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FRENCH VERBS AND VERBAL IDIOMS 
IN SPEECH 








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French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 
in Speech 


By 

B. MERAS 

* )i 

Author of “Etude Progressive,” “First Lessons in French,” 
“Gramraaire Fran§aise,” “Syntaxe Pratique,” etc. 
Director of Stern’s School of Languages of New York City 
and 

E. JULES MERAS 

Professor of French in Stern’s School of Languagess 
New York City 


jReto gork 

STURGIS & WALTON 
COMPANY 

1909 


ft * It I 


Copyright, 1909 

By STURGIS & WALTON COMPANY 
Set up and electrotyped. Published October, 1909 


Cla.*. 24G07 

SEP 22 W09 









NOTE 


r 

v 

This book contains about seventy-five verbs in 
common use, most of them irregular, and over two 
hundred and fifty verbal idioms formed with these 
verbs. It is divided into seventy-seven chapters, 
or lessons. In every lesson are given the principal 
parts of the verb, a list of idioms formed with that 
verb, if any, and examples of the use of same when 
necessary. Following this, there are from thirty 
to forty numbered practical English sentences. An 
English-French vocabulary will be found at the end 
of the book. 

This book is intended: First, for schools in which 
special attention is given to the spoken language; 
second, for high schools or other schools in which 
students are prepared for college entrance or re¬ 
gents’ examinations, experience having shown that 
a drill in the use of irregular and idiomatic verbs 
is indispensable to the candidates. As to persons 
who study languages for the sake of conversation 
only, the usefulness of this little work is obvious. 

Although a limited number of sentences is given, 
the teacher may increase their number simply by 
adding other persons of the verb in the affirmative, 
negative or interrogative forms. 

The drill may be made orally in the classroom in 
a quarter of an hour, or the sentences may be trans¬ 
lated at home by the student, in writing. The use 
of this book will not, therefore, take away more 
than fifteen minutes from the regular work of the 
class. 

New York City, May 12, 1909. 


v 



FRENCH VERBS AND VERBAL IDIOMS 
IN SPEECH 













































































































































































































































































































































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INTRODUCTION 


The forms of various tenses and moods of the 
French verb, with their corresponding* forms in 
English, taking as an example the verb parler— to 
speak, are the following: 

Present indicative: Je parle— I speak, I am speak¬ 
ing, I do speak. Imperfect: Je parlais— I was 
speaking, I spoke (used to speak). Past definite: 
Je parlai— I spoke, I did speak. Past indefinite: 
J’ai parle—I spoke, I have spoken, I have been 
speaking. Pluperfect: J’avais parle— I had spoken, 
I had been speaking. Past anterior ( seldom used 
in conversation and only after a conjunction) : 
Lorsque j’eus parle—When I had spoken. Future: 
Je parlerai— I shall or will speak. Future anterior: 
J’aurai parle— I shall or will have spoken. Im¬ 
perative: Parle—speak; parlons—let us speak; 
parlez—speak; qu’il parle—let him speak; qu’ils 
parlent—let them speak. Present conditional: Je 
parlerais— I should or would speak. Past condi¬ 
tional ( 1st form) : J’aurais parle—I should or would 
have spoken. Past conditional {2nd form, used 
when the action is doubtful or uncertain): J’eusse 
parle—I should or. would have spoken. Present 
subjunctive: Que je parle—that I speak. Imper¬ 
fect subjunctive: Que je parlasse {very seldom used 
in conversation, the present being allowed in its 
stead). Past subjunctive: Que j’aie parle—that I 
have spoken. Pluperfect subjunctive: Que j’eusse 
parle—that I had spoken. Present infinitive: Parler 
3 


4 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


—to speak. Past infinitive: Avoir parle—to have 
spoken. Present participle: Parlant—speaking. 
Past participle: Parle—spoken. 

Students will remember that some intransitive 
verbs and all reflexive verbs form their compound 
tenses with the auxiliary “etre.” 


FIRST LESSON 
Aller—To go 

Principal parts: Aller, allant, alle, je vais, j’allai. 

Aller a pied— to walk (to some place). Ex.: Je vais 
a l’ecole a pied—I walk to the school. 

Aller en voiture— to drive (to some place). Ex.: 
Nous allons toujours a 1’opera en voiture—We 
always drive to the opera. 

Ne pas y aller par quatre chemins— to go straight to 
the point. Ex.: II n’y va pas par quatre chemins— 
He goes straight to the point. 

II y va de sa fortune— His fortune is at stake. 

Comment allez-vous?— How are you? 

Allons done!— Nonsense! 


I 

1. I am going to tell you a story. 2. You are 
going to tell us a story. 3. Are you going to tell us 
a story ? 4. Are you not going to tell us a story ? 5. 
How is he to-day? 6. He is well. 7. My honor is at 
stake. 8. Nonsense! 9. He goes straight to the 

point. 10. You go straight to the point. 11. Where 



French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


5 


were yon going when I met you? 12. I was going 
downtown. 13. He is not here; he has gone to the 
theater. 14. Has he gone to the theater? 15. Did 
you walk there or did you drive? 16. I drove there. 
17. We drove there. 18. He went straight to the 
point. 19. I did not see him because he had gone 
to the country. 20. Had he gone to the country? 
21. I shall go to Paris. 22. Will you go to Paris this 
summer? 23. He will have already gone to church 
when you reach his house. 24. Would you go to 
Paris, if you had money? 25. Would you not go 
to Paris, if you had money? 26. She would go to 
Paris, if she had money. 27. Would you have gone 
to Paris, if you had had money? 28. Would you not 
have gone to Paris, if you had had money? 29. I 
would have gone there. 30. She would have gone 
there. 31. I want you to go to the park. 32. Do you 
want me to go with you? 33. Are you glad we are 
going with you? 34. I am very glad she has gone 
downtown. 35. Are you glad they have gone down¬ 
town? 36. Go to the station. 37. Let us go to the 
station. 38. Let us drive there. 39. I shall speak 
to you about that matter while going to the station. 
40. I congratulated him for having gone to take a 
rest in the country. 

SECOND LESSON 
Aller (continued) 

Aller au-devant de—to go to meet. Ex.: Le garcon 
va au-devant de son pere—The boy is going to 
meet his father. 



6 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


Aller a la rencontre de— to go to meet. Ex.: Je vais 
a la rencontre de mon ami—I am going to meet 
my friend. 

Je vais a sa rencontre—I am going to meet him or 
her. 

Je vais a leur rencontre—I am going to meet them. 
Elle irait a ma rencontre— She would go to meet me. 
Elle irait a notre rencontre— She would go to meet 
us. 

Elle irait a votre rencontre— She would go to meet 
you. 

Aller faire des emplettes— to go shopping. Ex.: Ces 
dames vont faire des emplettes—Those ladies are 
going shopping. 

Aller bien— to fit, to suit. Ex.: Cette robe vous va 
tres bien—That dress fits you well. 

Aller de travers— to go all wrong. 

Aller de mal en pis— to grow worse and worse. 
Aller comme le vent— to go full speed. 

II 

1. That dress fits you perfectly. 2. Does it fit me? 
3. Everything goes wrong in our house. 4. Busi¬ 
ness is growing worse and worse. 5. You were 
going at full speed when I saw you. 6. I was going 
to meet a friend. 7. He was going to meet you. 
8. He was going to meet them. 9. Were you going 
shopping? 10. Were you not going shopping? 11. 
We were going shopping when you saw us. 1£. My 
sister went to the station to meet a friend. 13. They 
- went to the station to meet a friend. 14. If they 
had gone to meet a friend, I would have seen them; 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


7 


I was in the station myself. 15. Why had you gone 
there ? to meet some one ? 16. If my father does not 
come back soon, his business here will grow worse 
and worse. 17. It goes all wrong now in his absence. 
18. This dress will fit you perfectly. 19. Those 
dresses will fit you perfectly. 20. Will you go 
shopping to-morrow ? 21. We will go shopping. 22. 
We will go to meet you if you tell us by what train 
you will arrive. 23. When she will have gone to 
meet her friend, we will see if the guest’s room is 
ready. 24. Everything would go wrong, if you went 
to Europe. 25. Business would grow worse and 
worse if you should go to Europe. 26. I think this 
dress would fit you well. 27. I think those gloves 
would fit you. 28. Would you go to meet them, if 
you knew by what train they are coming? 29. I 
would certainly go to meet them. 30. I would have 
gone shopping, if you had come with me. 31. Would 
you have gone shopping? 32. I would certainly 
have gone. 33. I am afraid they will not go to meet 
you. 34. Do you want me to go to meet them? 35. 
Stay here until we go shopping. 36. It is seldom we 
go shopping. 37. I am delighted you have come to 
meet me. 38. Are you delighted I have come to 
meet you? 39. Go to meet him. 40. After having 
gone shopping, we will return home. 

THIRD LESSON 

S’en aller—To go away 

Principal parts: S’en aller, s’en allant, s’en etant 
alle, je m’en vais, je m’en allai. 



8 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


S’en aller de la poitrine— to be dying of consump¬ 
tion, to be consumptive. 

Ill 

1. When are you going away? 2. I am going 
away next week. 3. We are going away to-mor¬ 
row. 4. She was going away when I saw her. 
5. When did you go away? 6. I went away at 
eleven o’clock. 7. He went away before the end of 
the play. 8. I did not go away before you. 9. Did 
you not go away before us? 10. I did not see her 
because she had gone away. 11. Had she already 
gone away when you arrived? 12. I shall soon go 
away. 13. She will not go away before you. 14. 
She will have gone away when you reach there. 

15. I would go away, if I had something to do. 

16. He would go away, if he had something to do. 

17. Would you go away, if you had something to 
do? 18. Would you have gone away, if you had 
had something to do? 19. Would he not have gone 
away, if he had had something to do? 20. I must 
go away. 21. I am sorry she is going away. 22. 
She does not want you to go away. 23. I am sorry 
she went away. 24. He is sorry we went away. 
25. Let us go away before them. 26. Let us not go 
away so soon. 27. I want to go away. 28. He 
wants to go away. 29. We want to go away. 30. 
You want to go away. 31. They were laughing 
while going away. 32. They blamed him for hav¬ 
ing gone away before the end of the speech. 33. 
Did you hear that Mr. X. is dying of consumption? 
34. I have been told that he was a consumptive. 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


9 


FOURTH LESSON 

S’amuser—To enjoy oneself 

Principal parts: S’amuser, s’amusant, s’etant amuse, 
je m’amuse, je m’amusai. 

IV 

1. Do you enjoy yourself in the country? 2. We 
enjoy ourselves very much. 3. I always enjoy my¬ 
self when I come here. 4. She was enjoying herself 
so much that I did not want to disturb h$r. 5. I 
did not enjoy myself so much at the seashore. 
6. Did you have a good time last night? 7. Did 
she have a good time? 8. Did she not have a good 
time? 9. We had such a good time that we found 
the evening too short. 10. She told me that she 
had enjoyed herself very much. 11. I hope you 
will enjoy yourself. 12. I am sure we shall have 
a good time. 13. I am sure that she will have had 
a very good time with so many friends. 14. She 
will return when she has sufficiently enjoyed her¬ 
self. 15. You will return when you have sufficiently 
enjoyed yourself. 16. I would enjoy myself very 
much, if I went to Europe. 17. Would you not 
enjoy yourself very much, if you went to Europe? 

18. She would enjoy herself, if she were here. 

19. Would you have enjoyed yourself, if you had 
been there? 20. W'ould she not have enjoyed her¬ 
self, if she had been there? 21. They would have 
enjoyed themselves very much, if they had been 
there. 22. I do not think that you will enjoy your¬ 
self as much as last year. 23. I shall give you some 


10 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


money so that you may have a good time with the 
children. 24. I am surprised you did not enjoy 
yourself. 25. Are you glad that we have had a 
good time? 26. Enjoy yourself during the trip. 
27. We shall return home only after having enjoyed 
ourselves very much. 28. Return home only after 
having had a good time. 


FIFTH LESSON 

S’apercevoir—To notice 

Principal parts: S’apercevoir, s’apercevant, s’etant 
apercu, je m’apercois, je m’apereus. 

S’apercevoir de quelque chose— to notice something. 
Ex.: Je m’apercois des progres que vous faites— 
I notice the progress you make. 

S’en apercevoir— to notice it or them. 

Y 

1. I notice that you make progress. 2. Do you 
notice that she makes progress? 3. Do you not 
notice that she has made progress? 4. I do notice 
it. 5. When she was abroad she noticed (used to 
notice) that each country has its own customs. 
6. You would inform me, if you noticed anything 
wrong. 7. Did you notice that he speaks very 
well? 8. I noticed it. 9. Did you not notice it? 

10. We noticed that she comes here very often. 

11. I did not notice it. 12. They did not notice 
anything. 13. I had not noticed that his pro¬ 
nunciation was defective. 14. Had you not noticed 



French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


11 


it? 15. Would you have informed me, if you had 
noticed it? 16. I hope that she will not notice it. 

17. They will not notice that something is missing. 

18. She will have noticed it when she leaves the 
house. 19. I would notice her progress if she should 
write to me regularly. 20. Would you not notice 
her progress, if she should write to you? 21. I 
should notice it. 22. She would have noticed the 
improvements, if she had come. 23. Would you 
have noticed them? 24. I would certainly have 
noticed them. 25. It may be that he will notice 
something. 26. It is better that they notice it. 
27. Let us go before he has noticed it. 28. I am 
sorry you have noticed what he has done. 29. He 
doubts we have noticed what has been said. 30. I 
did that without noticing it. 31. After having 
noticed it you cannot keep silent. 32. Do not 
notice anything* 


SIXTH LESSON 
Apprendre—To learn 

Principal parts: Apprendre, apprenant, appris, j’ap- 
prends, j’appris. 

Apprendre— to hear (to be informed of). Ex.: 
J’apprends que votre pere est malade—I hear 
that your father is ill. Je l’ai appris—I have 
heard it. 

En apprendre de belles sur le compte de— to hear 
fine things about (ironic.). Ex.: J’en apprends 
de belles sur le compte de votre frere—I hear fine 



12 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


things about your brother. J’en apprends de 
belles sur votre compte—I hear fine things about 
you. 

VI 

1. Are you learning much in your French class? 
2. I am learning a good deal this season. 3. What 
are you learning? 4. We hear that your father 
has gone to Europe. 5. She was learning much 
when she was in France. 6. I have learned my 
lesson in an hour. 7. Did you learn your lesson in 
an hour? 8. We heard that your father is back. 
9. When did you hear that? 10. I had heard that 
before I left. 11. Had you already heard it? 12. 
She will learn Latin next winter. 13. She will 
have learned the Latin language when she com¬ 
mences Greek. 14. Would you learn French, if you 
had the time? 15. Would she not learn French, if 
she had the time? 16. We would learn French, if 
we had the time. 17. I would have heard of that, 
if I had been in town. 18. She would have heard 
of that, if she had been in town. 19. Would you 
not have heard of that, if you had been in town? 
20. My parents want me to learn French. 21. Do 
you not want him to learn French? 22. It may be 
that you hear of that to-day. 23. I am surprised 
that he has heard of that so soon. 24. Are you sorry 
that I have heard of the news before you? 25. 
Learn that lesson for to-morrow. 26. Let us learn 
that page for to-morrow. 27. He burst out laugh¬ 
ing on hearing that piece of news. 28. After hav¬ 
ing heard that piece of news, he left for Europe. 
29. I am glad to hear it. 30. We hear fine things 
about you. 31. I have heard fine things about him. 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


13 


SEVENTH LESSON 

S’asseoir—To sit down 

Principal parts: S’asseoir, s’asseyant, s’etant assis, 
je m’assieds, je m’assis. 

VII 

1. She always sits by me. 2. Why do you sit so 
near the window? 3. I always sit in the same 
place. 4. Do you not always sit in the same place? 
5. My father always sat on that chair at the end of 
the table. 6. When we went to the theater in Paris, 
we always sat in an orchestra chair. 7. I sat near 
the window and I caught cold. 8. She sat near the 
window and she caught cold. 9. Why did you sit 
near the window? 10. Did you not sit by her at 
the table? 11. They had all sat down when I came 
in. 12. Had everybody sat down when you came 
in? 13. He will sit near you. 14. He will not sit 
near you. 15. Where will you sit? 16. We shall 
sit at that table. 17. We shall have already sat 
down when you come. 18. I would sit down if I 
were tired. 19. He w r ould sit down if he were tired. 
20. Would you sit down if you were tired? 21. 
Would you not sit down, if you were tired? 22. 
Would he not have sat down, if he had been tired? 

23. I w r ould have sat down, if I had been tired. 

24. I must sit down. 25. I want you to sit down. 
26. Do you want us to sit down? 27. I am glad 
you sat near her. 28. Are you glad I sat near 
you? 29. I want to sit down. 30. We want to sit 
down. 31. They want to sit down. 32. Do you 


14 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


not want to sit down? 33. After having seated 
myself at my desk, I began to work. 34. Let ns sit 
down on that bench. 35. Do not sit there. 36. 
Please sit down. 37. Kindly sit down. 


EIGHTH LESSON 

Attendre—To wait for 

Principal parts: Attendre, attendant, attendu, j’at¬ 
tends, j’attendis. 

Attendre— to expect (followed by a noun). Ex.: 

J’attends un ami—I expect a friend. 

S’attendre a— To expect to (followed by a verb). 
Ex.: Je m’attends a etre invite—I expect to be 
invited. 

S’y attendre— to expect to be or to expect it. Ex.: 
Je n’ai pas encore ete invite, mais je m’y attends 
—I have not been invited yet, but I expect to be. 

VIII 

1. Are you waiting for some one? 2. Are you 

waiting for me? 3. I expect a letter by the first 

mail. 4. I expect to receive a letter by the first 

mail. 5. Do you expect to be invited? 6. I expect 

to be. 7. I expected to be. 8. She expected to be. 
9. Did you expect to be invited? 10. I was waiting 
for you when I received your telegram. 11. Have 
you waited for me long? 12. Have you waited for 
her long? 13. I have waited for her a full hour. 
14. I hope you have not waited for me long. 15. 
She had waited for me a full hour. 16. Had they 



French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


15 


waited for you long? 17. They will wait for us at 
the station. 18. I shall wait for you only a half 
hour. 19. She will not have waited long when we 
reach the station. 20. I would wait for you at the 
station, if I knew what train you will take. 21. 
Would you wait for me? 22. Would she wait for 
us? 23. I would have waited for you, if I had been 
able to do so. 24. Would you not have waited for 
me, if you had been able to do so? 25. We would 
have waited for you. 26. She wants you to wait 
for her. 27. Do you think she expects to be in¬ 
vited? 28. I do not think she expects to be. 29. 
You had better not wait for us. 30. I am glad you 
have waited for us. 31. She is surprised I have 
waited for her so long. 32. Wait for us until five 
o’clock. 33. Do not wait for us after five o’clock. 
34. Let us wait for them here. 35. I read the paper 
while waiting for you. 36. I returned home after 
having waited for an hour. 


NINTH LESSON 

Avoir—To have 

Principal parts: Avoir, ayant, eu, j’ai, j’eus. 

Avoir lieu— to tak^ place. 

Avoir tout lieu de —to have every reason to. Ex.: 
J’ai tout lieu d’etre satisfait—I have every reason 
to be pleased. 

Avoir envie de— to have a mind to, to feel like. 
Ex.: J’ai envie de lire ce livre—I have a mind to 
read that book. 



16 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


Avoir l’air— to look. Ex.: Vous avez l’air fatigue 
—you look tired. 

Avoir l’air de— to look as if. Ex.: Yous avez l’air 
de vous amuser—You look as if you were enjoy¬ 
ing yourself. 

Avoir soin de— to look after, to take care to. Ex.: 
J’aurai soin des bagages—I shall look after the 
baggage. 

Avoir mal a— to have a pain in, to ache. Ex.: J’ai 
mal a la tete—I have a headache. 

Avoir de la peine a— to be hardly able. Ex.: II a 
de la peine a vous entendre—He is hardly able 
to hear you. 

Avoir alfaire avec— to have to deal with (to be ne¬ 
gotiating with). Ex.: Vous avez affaire avec un 
homme tris capable—You have to deal with a 
very able man. 

Avoir l’habitude de— to be in the habit of. 

Avoir pitie de— to have pity on. Ex.: J’ai pitie de 
lui—I have pity on him. 

Avoir chaud, froid, raison, tort, faim, soif, peur, 
sommeil, honte— to be warm, cold, right, wrong, 
hungry, thirsty, afraid, sleepy, ashamed. 

Avoir beau.. . — in vain, no matter how much, though. 
Ex.: J’ai beau insister—No matter how much I 
insist. It is in vain for me to insist. II a beau 
insister—No matter how much he insists. Nous 
avons beau insister—No matter how much we in¬ 
sist. Yous avez beau insister—No matter how 
much you insist. On a beau etre jeune—Though 
one is young. 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


17 


IX 

1. I have every reason to be satisfied. 2. She has 
every reason to be satisfied. 3. It is in vain for you 
to weep, you will not have that necklace; it is not 
for children. 4. It is in vain for him to say that he 
is innocent, people do not believe him. 5. She looks 
ill. 6. She looks as if she were not pleased. 7. 
Have you a headache? 8. I do not feel like going 
out, I have a toothache. 9. When we traveled 
abroad, my brother always looked after our small 
parcels. 10. He was in the habit of rising early. 
11. The poor are hardly able to make both ends 
meet. 12. I protested in vain; they did not listen 
to me. 13. The wedding took place day before 
yesterday. 14. We were hardly able to find that 
street. 15. The rooms we occupied were very 
beautiful; my brother had taken care to engage 
them in advance. 16. We shall be hungry when we 
arrive. 17. You will be thirsty, if you eat all those 
candies. 18. Are you afraid it will rain? 19. Will 
you not be ashamed to come so late? 20. When 
this wedding will have taken place, I shall return 
home. 21. I would be too warm, if I remained 
there. 22. It is certain that you would not be cold. 
23. The children cannot wait until the end, they 
would be sleepy. 24. If you had told him that, he 
would have looked as if he did not understand. 

25. I would have looked as if I did not understand. 

26. An accident would certainly have taken place, 

if they had not made those repairs. 27. Do you 
think I have to deal with an honest man ? 28. I am 

grieved that you have a toothache. 29. I am sorry 


18 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


that she did not feel like going out. 30. Are you 
not surprised that they have had pity on me? 31. 
Have pity on me. 32. Let us look as if we did not 
see them. 33. Congratulate yourself to have had 
to deal with me. 34. Was I not right to tell you 
that he would come? 35. You are always right. 
36. You are never wrong. 


TENTH LESSON 

Y avoir—There.. .be 

Principal parts : Y avoir, y ayant, y ayant eu, il y a, 
il y eut. 

II y a deux ans— two years ago. Ex.: Je Lai vu, 
il y a deux ans—I saw him two years ago. 

Il y a deux ans que...— It is two years since... 
Ex.: Il y a deux ans que je demeure dans cette 
maison—I have been living in this house for two 
this house). 

Il pent y avoir— There can be, There may be. Ex.: 
Il peut y avoir vingt personnes dans cette maison 
—There may be twenty people in that house. 

Il doit y avoir— There must be. Ex.: Il doit y avoir 
deux mille habitants dans ce village—There must 
be two thousand inhabitants in this village. 

Il devrait y avoir— There should be. 

Il n’y a pas moyen de...— There is no possibility 
to..., It is impossible to... Ex.: On fait telle- 
ment de bruit qu’il n’y a pas moyen d’entendre— 
They make so much noise that it is impossible to 
hear. 



French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


19 


Qu’est-ce qu’il y a?— What is the matter? 

II y a que. .. —The matter is that... 

X 

1. How many pupils are there in .your class? 2. 
There are twenty. 3. I do not know how many 
there are. 4. Are there more than twenty? 5 
Are there not more than twenty? 6. How long 
have you been in America? 7. I have been in this 
country for ten years (It is ten years since I have 
been in this country). 8. You look annoyed; what 
is the matter? 9. The matter is that if business 
goes on in this way, I shall soon be ruined. 10. 
When did you hear this news? A long time ago. 

11. Were there many people at that evening party? 

12. There were about one hundred people. 13. 
The street was so crowded with carriages that it 
was impossible to cross. 14. Was there not a 
policeman there to keep the carriages moving? 15. 
There was an accident this morning. 16. Where 
was there an accident? 17. If there had been an 
accident, we would have heard of it. 18. Had there 
been a fire? 19. Had there not been a fire? 20. 
There will not be many people. 21. Will there be 
many people? 22. It will soon be ten years that 
we are living in this house. 23. There would be 
thirteen people at table, if my brother arrived 
to-day. 24. Would there be thirteen people? 25. 
Would there not be thirteen people? 26. How 
many people would there have been, if your brother 
had arrived? 27. There would have been thirteen 
(of them). 28. I am surprised there are so many 


20 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


poor in this city. 29. He is very much afraid that 
there may soon be some accident. 30. It may be 
that there has been some delay. 31. How many 
books are there in your library? 32. There may be 
five hundred volumes. 33. Should there not be 
another volume at the end of that shelf? 34. Yes, 
there should be another. 35. There must be a dry- 
goods store in the village; you will be able to buy 
all you require. 36. There should be no secret 
between husband and wife. 37. Have they been 
married long? (Is it long since they have been mar¬ 
ried?) 38. Five years ago last Easter. (It was five 
years at Easter.) 39. It will be five years at 
Christmas. 


ELEVENTH LESSON 
Boire—To drink 

Principal parts: Boire, buvant, bu, je bois, je bus. 
Boire a la sante de —to drink the health of. Ex.: 
Buvons a la sante de la maitresse de la maison— 
Let us drink the health of the mistress of the 
house. 

XI 

1. What do you drink at dinner? 2. We drink 
only water in this house. 3. What do the French 
drink? 4. They drink wine. 5. When I was at 
Saratoga I only drank mineral water. 6. Did you 
drink mineral water when you were at Saratoga? 
7. What did you drink this morning? 8. I drank 
coffee. 9. The children drank only milk. 10. Did 



French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


21 


they drink only milk? 11. I had already drunk 
several glasses of water, when he came to the park. 
12. Will you drink coffee to-night? 13. I shall 
drink only water. 14. She will drink tea. 15. 
Will you drink some? 16. They will drink some. 
17. I shall have drunk all that water when I leave 
the table. 18. I would drink, if I were thirsty. 
19. You would drink, if you were thirsty. 20. 
Would you not drink, if you were thirsty? 21. We 
would not drink, if we were not thirsty. 22. Of 
course you would have drunk, if you had been 
thirsty. 23. Would she not have drunk, if she had 
been thirsty? 24. It is better we drink something. 
25. I want you to drink something. 26. She must 
drink something. 27. I am surprised you have 
drunk so little. 28. She is delighted we have drunk 
her health. 29. One cannot eat a meal without 
drinking. 30. I felt better after having drunk a 
glass of water. 31. Drink something. 32. Let us 
drink the health of our host. 


TWELFTH LESSON 

Comprendre—To understand 

Principal parts: Comprendre, comprenant, compris, 
je comprends, je compris. 

XII 

1. Do you understand French? 2. Do you not 
understand French? 3. Does he understand you? 
4. Do they understand me? 5. They do not un- 



22 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


derstand yon. 6. When I was in France I under¬ 
stood all they said to me. 7. Did you really under¬ 
stand all they said to you? 8. I did not understand 
you very well yesterday. 9. I have understood you 
better to-day. 10. She understood me. 11. Did 
you understand her? 12. Did you not understand 
him? 13. If I had understood every word, I would 
have stayed till the end. 14. Would yoii have stayed 
till the end, if you had understood every word? 

15. She will understand you, if y<5u speak slowly. 

16. You can speak faster, we shall understand you. 

17. When she will have understood the peculiarities 

of that language, she will study another. 18. I 
would understand him, if he did not speak so fast. 
19. Would you understand him? 20. Would you 
not understand him ? 21. I am quite sure she would 

understand him. 22. She would have understood 
the meaning of that word, if she had met it several 
times. 23. Would you have understood it? 24. I 
would have understood it. 25. We would certainly 
have understood it. 26. Understand me well. 27. 
Make believe you do not understand him. 28. You 
cannot answer before having understood what he 
means. 29. I am glad you understand French. 

30. Must I understand French to travel in France? 

31. I am looking for a chauffeur who understands 
French. 32. I am sorry you did not understand 
what I said. 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


23 


THIRTEENTH LESSON 
Conduire—To drive, to conduct 

Principal parts: Conduire, conduisant, conduit, je 
conduis, je conduisis. 

Conduire— to take (to drive). Ex.: Conduisez-moi 
a l’hotel—Take me to the hotel. 

Se conduire— to behave. Ex.: Vous vous conduisez 
bien—You behave well. 

XIII 

1. I have a pair of horses that I drive myself. 
2. She drives very nicely. 3. That child behaves 
very well in the classroom. 4. I know you behave 
very nicely. 5. I was driving my two new horses 
in the park when it began to rain. 6. Was she 
driving in the park when it began to rain? 7. I 
have been driving my horses all morning. 8. My 
friend took me home. 9 Did you take her home? 
10. Where did you take them? 11. He behaved 
very well on that occasion. 12. They behaved very 
well. 13. If you had taken me home, I would have 
shown you a beautiful picture. 14. If he had be¬ 
haved properly, I would have kept him. 15. I shall 
take you home, if you wish. 16. He will take you 
home. 17. The children will not be there, the gov¬ 
erness will have taken them home. 18. He would 
take you home, if you were ready. 19. Would you 
take me home, if I were ready? 20. Would you 
not take me home, if I were ready? 21. We would 
take you home, if you were ready. 22. I would 
have driven my horses through the village, if I had 


24 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


not been in such a hurry. 23. Would you have 
behaved in the same manner, if you had been in my 
place? 24. I would have behaved exactly in the 
same manner. 25. It is important that you should 
behave properly. 26. It is good that we behave 
properly. 27. You must be glad we have taken you 
home. 28. I am glad you have taken me home. 
29. After having taken you home, we will go to the 
stable. 30. Driver, take us to the hotel. 


FOURTEENTH LESSON 
Connaitre—To know 

Principal parts: Connaitre, connaissant, connu, je 
connais, je connus. 

Se connaitre en— to be a judge of. Ex.: II se com 
nait en musique, n’est-ce pas?—He is a good judge 
of music, is he not? 

S’y connaitre— to be a good judge of it. Ex.: Je 
puis vous dire que ce vin est excellent, je m’y 
connais—I can tell you that wine is excellent, I 
am a good judge. 

Connaitre de vue, de nom— to know by sight, by 
name. Ex.: Je connais cet homme de vue—I 
know that man by sight. 

XIV 

1. Do you know that lady? 2. I know her. 3. 

I do not know her. 4. Do you not know her? 5. 

I do not know them. 6. He is a good judge of 

paintings. Are you? 7. I am not a good judge. 8. 



French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


25 


My father was a good judge. 9. I knew that family 
very well. 10. Did you know that family? 11. I 
have known your father in college. 12. If I had 
known all the details of that affair, I would have 
acted differently. 13. Would you have acted dif¬ 
ferently, if you had known all the details of that 
affair? 14. I shall soon know them. 15. She will 
soon know them. 16. He will never have known 
happiness. 17. You would know that man if you 
had to deal with him. 18. You would be a good 
judge of wines, if you lived in France. 19. Yes, I 
would be a good judge, if I lived in France. 20. 
You would have known that man, if you had had 
to deal with him. 21. He would have known that 
man, if he had had to deal with him. 22. Do you 
think he knows me? 23. I doubt you know him as 
well as I. 24. It is to be regretted that you have 
not known her father. 25. How is it that he has 
not known him? 26. I apply to you, knowing your 
kind heart. 27. You can decide nothing without 
knowing all the details of the affair. 28. It is not 
prudent to buy pictures without being a judge. 
29. He is a good judge. 30. Do you know the 
artist? 31. I know him by sight. 32. We only 
know him by reputation. 33. I only knew that man 
by name. 


FIFTEENTH LESSON 
Coudre—To sew 

Principal parts: Coudre, cousant, cousu, je couds, je 
cousis. 



26 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


XV 

1. Do yon sew a little every morning? 2. I am 
sewing since nine o’clock. 3. We sew several 
dresses for the poor every year. 4. What were you 
doing when I came ? I was sewing. 5. If yon sewed 
a little every day you would be more skilful. 6. 
Have you been sewing all the morning? 7. Has 
she been seeing all the morning? 8. We did not 
sew these dresses ourselves. 9. She had sewed half 
of the dress when I called on her. 10. If you had 
sewed that dress yourself, it would look better. 

11. In the future, we shall sew our dresses ourselves. 

12. I shall have sewed all the skirt when you come 
back. 13. Will you have sewed all the waist when 
I come back? 14. I would sew now, if I had a 
needle and thread. 15. Would you sew if you had 
a needle and thread? 16. She would sew if she had 
a needle and thread. 17. Would you have sewed, 
if you had had the material? 18. Would you not 
have sewed if you had had the material? 19. She 
would have sewed, if she had had the material. 
20. I wish you would sew a little every day. 21. 
Do you want me to sew a little every day? 22. 
She wishes us to sew a little every day. 23. I am 
glad you have sewed that skirt in my absence. 24. 
I am surprised she has not sewed all the waist. 
25. Let us sew a little every day. 26. Do not sew 
by the gaslight. 27. After having sewed that skirt 
I shall take a rest. 28. Do you not know how to 
sew? 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 27 

SIXTEENTH LESSON 
Courir—To run 

Principal parts: Courir, courant, couru, je cours, je 
courus. 

Courir a toutes jambes —to run as fast as one’s legs 
will carry one. 

XVI 

1. Why are you running? 2. Why is he run¬ 
ning? 3. I am running because I am afraid to be 
late. 4. Those children run too much. 5. Why 
were you running? 6. I was running because I was 
afraid to be late. 7. Were you not running when 
I saw you? 8. Why did she run? 9. She did not 
run. 10. That child has been running all day. 11. 
You are out of breath; you have been running. 

12. I had run so fast that 1 could hardly breathe. 

13. If you had run you would not have missed the 
train. 14. We w r ould not have missed the train if 
we had run. 15. She will run for fear of being late. 
16. Will you not run? 17. When he will have run 
he wull come to take a rest. 18. In your place I 
would not run. 19. We would run only if we were 
in a hurry. 20. Would you run if you were in a 
hurry? 21. I would have run if I had known you 
were waiting for me. 22. Would you have run if 
you had known I was waiting for you? 23. Would 
you not have run? 24. They would have run if 
they had been in a hurry. 25. They must not run. 
26. You must not run. 27. She does not want me 
to run. 28. Do you want us to run? 29. I am 
sorry you have run. 30. Are you glad I have run? 


28 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


31. I came here running. 32. After having run 
from the station to my house, I sat down with 
pleasure. 33. Do not run if you do not wish to be 
out of breath. 34. He was running as fast as his 
legs would carry him. 35. Why were you running 
as fast as your legs would carry you? 36. I saw 
him running as fast as his legs would carry him. 


SEVENTEENTH LESSON 

Craindre—To fear, to be afraid 

Principal parts: Craindre, craignant, craint, je 
crains, je craignis. 

XVII 

1. I am afraid of the rain. 2. Are you not afraid 
of the rain? 3. We took our umbrellas because we 
are afraid of the rain. 4. Children do not fear the 
rain. 5. When I was a child I was greatly afraid 
of thunder. 6. He was afraid to be scolded by his 
father. 7. Were you afraid to be scolded? 8. I 
did not come in, because I was afraid to disturb you. 
9. She was not afraid to disturb me. 10. We did 
not fear to disturb you. 11. You would not have 
done that, if you had been afraid of the conse¬ 
quences. 12. If she had been afraid to make you 
nervous, she would not have played piano all the 
morning. 13. She will tell you the whole story; 
she will not be afraid to annoy you. 14. We will 
not come to-night; we would be afraid to disturb 
you. 15. Would you not be afraid to disturb us? 
16. I would be afraid to miss the train, if I should 



French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


29 


stay longer. 17. Would you have been afraid to 
miss the train, if you had stayed until the end of 
the play? 18. Yes, we would have been afraid to 
miss it. 19. Do you think he is afraid to lose his 
money? 20. I am surprised you are afraid to lose 
your money. 21. I am surprised you were afraid to 
lose your money. 22. I do not think he has ever 
feared the criticisms of the newspapers. 23. Do not 
fear to hurt his feelings. 24. Let us not be afraid 
of the consequences. 25. He died without ever hay¬ 
ing feared the attacks of his enemies. 


EIGHTEENTH LESSON 

Croire—To believe, to think 

Principal parts: Croire, croyant, cru, je crois, je 
crus. 

Croire a, croire en— to believe in. Ex.: Je crois a 
l’immortalite de Lame—I believe in the immor¬ 
tality of the soul. Je crois en Dieu—I believe in 
God. 

Y croire— to believe in it. Ex.: Croyez-vous a 
l’innocence de cet homme? J’y crois—Do you 
believe in the innocence of that man? I believe 
in it. 

XVIII 

1. Do you believe what he says? 2. I believe it. 
3. We do not believe it. 4. Do you believe me? 
5. Do you not believe me? 6. They do not believe 
in God. 7. He does not believe in the immortality 
of the soul. 8. I believe in it. 9. My parents be- 



30 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


lieved in it. 10. Did the ancients believe in it? 
11. I thought you were in the country. 12. We 
thought she was very ill. 13. I thought it well to 
inform you. 14. She thought it well to inform you. 
15. When we heard the explosion we thought that 
everybody was going to perish. 16. I would not 
have come, if I had thought he was speaking 
seriously. 17. Would you have come, if you had 
thought he was speaking seriously? 18. I shall 
never believe in the innocence of that man. 19. He 
will never believe in it. 20. Will you believe in it, 
if you are shown the evidence? 21. That man will 
never have believed in anything. 22. Would you 
believe it if you should see it? 23. I would believe 
it only if I should see it. 24. She would not believe 
it, if she did not see it. 25. Would you have be¬ 
lieved it, if you had seen it? 26. Would you not 
have believed it? 27. I would have believed it, if 
I had seen it. 28. Who would ever have believed 
it? 29. I shall show you the letter, so that you may 
believe it. 30. I am sorry you do not believe in the 
innocence of that man. 31. It is to be regretted 
that they do not believe what you say. 32. It is to 
be regretted that they have not believed what you 
said. 33. Whether you believe it or not, it is all 
the same to him. 34. Do not believe all they say. 
35. I believe only what I see. 

NINETEENTH LESSON 
Devenir—To become 

Principal parts: Devenir, devenant, devenu, je de- 
viens, je devins. 



French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 31 

Devenir—to become of. Ex.: Je ne sais pas ce que 
je deviendrai—I do not know what will become 
of me. Qu’est devenu mon livre?—What has be¬ 
come of my book? 

Devenir amoureux de—to fall in love with. Ex.: 
II est devenu amoureux de cette femme—He fell 
in love with that woman. 


XIX 

1. That child is becoming more and more beau¬ 
tiful every day. 2. Does he really become more 
beautiful? 3. We become wiser with age. 4. If 
he became richer he would buy that property. 5. 
I was becoming more and more uneasy. 6. They 
became immensely rich. 7. What has become of 
my hat? 8. I do not know what has become of it. 

9. Do you know what has become of my gloves? 

10. I do not know what has become of them. 11. 
You fell in love with that lady. 12. He had become 
so rich that he bought property everywhere he 
went. 13. If you had become ill what would you 
have done? 14. He will fall in love with that lady 
if he sees her. 15. I shall certainly become stronger 
if I live in the country. 16/What will become of 
you? 17. I do not know what will become of us. 
18. As soon as I shall have become stronger I shall 
return to the city. 19. They will return to the city 
when they have become stronger. 20. He would 
fall in love with you, if lie should see you. 21. 
Would you not fall in love with her? 22. I would 
become wiser if I should associate with them. 23. 
What would have become of you, if you had been 


32 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


in his place? 24. I do not know what would have 
become of me. 25. We would not have become 
wiser. 26. I want you to become a man. 27. We 
want him to become a man. 28. I shall send him 
to the country for fear that he will fall in love with 
her. 29. I do not think he will fall in love with her. 
30. It is too bad he has become so poor. 31. I am 
glad you have become celebrated. 32. I congratu¬ 
late you for having become so well known. 33. As 
one grows older one becomes wiser. 34. Practice 
makes perfect (by forging, one becomes a black¬ 
smith). 


TWENTIETH LESSON 

Devoir—To owe 

Principal parts: Devoir, devant, du, je dois, je dus. 

Other meanings 

Je dois, etc.—I must, I have to, I am obliged to, I 
am to, etc. 

Je devais, etc.— I had to, I was obliged to, I was to, 
etc. 

Je dus, etc.— I had to, I was obliged to, etc. 

J’ai du, etc.— I had to, I was obliged to, I must have, 
etc. 

J’avais du, etc.—I had had to, I had been obliged 
to, etc. 

Je devrai, etc.— I shall have to, I shall be obliged 

to, etc. 

J’aurai du, etc.—I shall have had to, I shall have 
been obliged to, etc. 



French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


33 


Je devrais, etc.— I should, I ought to, etc. 

J’aurais du, etc.— I should have, I ought to have,, 
etc. 

Que je doive, etc.—That I must, that I have to, that 
I am obliged to, etc. 

Que j’aie du, etc.—That I have had to, that I have 
been obliged to, etc. 


XX 


1. How much do you owe him? 2. I do not owe 
him anything. 3. Children must write to their 
parents. 4. We must write very soon. 5. Mrs. X. 
is to sing to-night. 6. Mrs. X. was to sing last 
night. 7. My friends were to come by the ten 
o’clock train. 8. Last year I had to wear specta¬ 
cles. 9. I did not owe him much. 10. Is that all 
you owed him? 11. It was so hot in the hall that 
I had to go out. 12. She had to return home. 13. 
We had to pay half of the expenses. 14. You must 
have read that book. 15. We must have answered 
that letter. 16. If I had been obliged to make his 
acquaintance, I would have come. 17. I think you 
will have to pay that bill. 18. She will certainly be 
obliged to pay it. 19. You should write to me. 
20. She should write to you. 21. I should call on 
her. 22. Should you not call on her? 23. They 
ought to thank us. 24. You should have told me 
that. 25. She should have written to me. 26. I 
should have gone there. 27. Should you not have 
gone there? 28. They ought to have been here. 
29. They do not reduce their expenses although 
they owe a good deal. 30. It is too bad you owe so 


34 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


much, money. 31. I regret very much that you 
have had to go. 32. I regret that she has had to 
go. 33. We regret that they have had to go. 


TWENTY-FIRST LESSON 

Dire—To say, to tell 

Principal parts: Dire, disant, dit, je dis, je dis. 

Dire des injures or des sottises a— to abuse. Ex.: 
On a dit des injures a mon associe—They abused 
my partner. On m’a dit des injures—They 
abused me. 

Dire du bien de— to speak highly of. Ex.: II m’a 
dit du bien de vous—He spoke highly of you. 
Dire a l’oreille —to whisper. Ex.: Que vous a-t-il 
dit a l’oreille?—What did he whisper into your 
ear? 

Dire sa fagon de penser— to speak one’s mind freely. 
Dire a (p.) son fait— to give (p.) a piece of one’s 
mind. Ex.: Je lui ai dit son fait— I gave him a 
piece of my mind. 

XXI 

1. What are you telling me? 2. I am telling you 
the truth. 3. He does not say anything. 4. We do 
not say anything. 5. Your parents tell me that you 
are not pleased. 6. What were you telling me? 
7. I was telling you that everybody accepted your 
kind invitation. 8. What did you tell him? 9. I 
told him that I was pleased. 10. I have been told 
(they have told me) that the president has prom¬ 
ised to come. 11. Did you not tell me that the 



French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


35 


president was to come? 12. I did say so. 13. I 
had told you so. 14. You had told me so. 15. 
She had told me so. 16. I shall tell you all when 
I come back. 17. Will you tell me all? 18. Will 
you not tell me all? 19. When I shall have told 
you all, you will understand the situation. 20. 
Would you tell me that story in French, if I asked 
you to do so ? 21. I would tell that story in French, 

if I had a sufficient vocabulary. 22. He would tell 
that story, if he had a sufficient vocabulary. 23. 
Would you have said it? 24. I would never have 
said it. 25. He would never have said it. 26. In 
your place, we would tell him that that cannot be 
done. 27. Do you want me to tell the whole truth? 
28. I want you to tell the whole truth. 29. They 
do not believe him although he tells the truth. 
30. I am surprised he has told the truth. 31. He 
will not be pleased until he has told the whole truth. 
32. You will never injure yourself in telling the 
truth. 33. After having said that he withdrew. 
34. Do that without my telling you. 35. They 
abused him. 36. They spoke highly of you. 37. 
What did she whisper to you? 38. Do you want 
me to speak my mind freely? 39. If he returns, I 
will give him a piece of my mind. 


TWENTY-SECOND LESSON 
Se douter—To suspect 

Principal parts : Se douter, se doutant, s ’etant doute, 
je me doute, je me doutai. 



36 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


Se douter de quelque chose— to suspect something. 
S’en douter —to suspect it. 

XXII 

1. Do you suspect anything"? 2. I do not suspect 
anything. 3. Does she suspect that there will be a 
party to-morrow night? 4. She suspects it. 5. 
She does not suspect it. 6. I suspected it. 7. You 
did not suspect that your friends would come. 8. 
She did not suspect it. 9. When he heard the bell 
he suspected that there was a surprise in store for 
him. 10. Did he suspect it? 11. I suspected it. 
12. He had suspected that they would compliment 
him; that is why he went away. 13. Had he sus¬ 
pected it? 14. Had you suspected it? 15. He will 
not suspect anything. 16. You will not suspect it. 
17 He would suspect what has happened, if he were 
here. 18. Would he suspect it? 19. Would you 
not suspect it? 20. I would never have suspected 
it. 21. Who would ever have suspected it? 22. 
We would have suspected it. 23. They would not 
have suspected it. 24. Are you afraid they suspect 
something? 25. I am so glad he does not suspect 
anything. 26. Whether you suspect anything or 
not, that will not change matters. 27. He hit the 
nail on the head without suspecting it. 28. I hit 
the nail on the head without suspecting it. 29. You 
hit the nail on the head without suspecting it. 

TWENTY-THIRD LESSON 

Ecrire—To write 

Principal parts: Ecrire, ecrivant, ecrit, j’ecris, 
j ’ecrivis. 



French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


37 


XXIII 

1. I write to him every day. 2. She writes to me 
every day. 3. We write to you every day. 4. Do 
you not write to him every day? 5. Do they not 
write to us every day? 6. I was writing to you 
when you came. 7. Were you writing to me when 
I came. 8. Did you not write to him often? 9. 
They did not write to them often. 10. I wrote to 
you yesterday. 11. Did you write to me? 12. Did 
she write to you? 13. We have written to them. 
14. They have not written to me. 15. We have 
never written to them. 16. I had already written 
to her when I received your letter. 17. Had you 
already written to him? 18. He would have come 
if you had written to him. 19. I shall write to you 
often. 20. She will write to me. 21. Will you 
write to him? 22. Will you not write to her before 
leaving? 23. When I shall have written to her, I 
shall be easy. 24. She will be easy only when she 
will have written to him. 25. I would write to you, 
if something important should happen. 26. She 
would write to me. 27. You would write to her. 
28. We would write to them. 29. Would you not 
write to him? 30. Would you not have written to 
him, if something important had happened. 31. 
We would have written to him. 32. I would never 
have written that. 33. It is proper that you write 
him more often. 34. It may be that she will write 
me by next mail. 35. Answer her before she writes 
you a second letter. 36. I regret that you have 
written her in that tone. 37. Are you sorry that 
I wrote him in that tone? 38- Write me more often. 


38 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


39. Do not write him so often. 40. After haying 
written him all my plans, I shall start off. 


TWENTY-FOURTH LESSON 

S’enfuir—To flee, to run away 

Principal parts: S’enfuir, s’enfuyant, s’etant enfui, 
je m’enfuis, je m’enfuis. 

XXIY 

1. There is the dog escaping through the garden. 
2. Why do you run away when I come ? 3. I do not 

run away. 4. We do not run away. 5. They do 
not run away. 6. The little girl was running away 
when I stopped her. 7. Were you running away? 
8. Were you not running away? 9. I ran away to 
escape her remonstrances. 10. He fled for the same 
motive. 11. Why did you run away? 12. We did 
not run away. 13. I had fled to avoid a scene. 14. 
We had fled to avoid a scene. 15. Is it for that you 
ran away? 16. If he gets angry, I shall flee. 17. 
He will not flee. He is braver than I. 18. Will you 
run away? 19. He will no sooner have fled than 
he will regret it. 20. You will no sooner have fled 
that you will regret it. 21. I would run away if he 
entered here. 22. Would you run away? 23. 
Would you not run away? 24. Why would they 

run away? 25. We would not run away. 26. 

Would you have run away, if he had come? 27. 

Would she have run away, if she had seen him? 

2S. I would not have run away. 29. They would 



French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 39 

not have run away. 30. I do not like your always 
running away when I come. 31. He does not like 
me to run away when he comes. 32. What has he 
done to make you run away like that? 33. You are 
not pleased that w r e ran away? 34. He is not 
pleased that I ran away. 35. Do not run away like 
that. 36. It is not nice of you to run away when 
I come. 37. Where will you go after having fled? 


TWENTY-FIFTH LESSON 

Envoyer—To send 

Principal parts: Envoyer, envoy ant, envoye, j’en- 
voie, j’envoyai. 

Envoyer chercher—to send for. 

XXY 

1. I send you my compliments. 2. She sends me 
her compliments. 3. Do you send her your compli¬ 
ments? 4. When someone is ill, we send for the 
doctor. 5. Do they not send for the doctor? 6. 
I sent flowers to my friend every day during her 
illness. 7. Did you not send her flowers every day? 
8. He sent her flowers. 9. I have sent you a box 
of candies. 10. Did you send her a box of candies? 
11. He sent her a box of candies. 12. Did he not 
send for the doctor? 13. We have sent for the 
doctor. 14. He had already sent me several boxes 
of candies. 15. If you had sent her candies, she 
would have offered us some. 16. Fortunately I had 
sent for the doctor. 17. I shall send you that 



40 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


package by mail. 18. Will you send it to me by 
mail? 19. We shall send it to you as soon as pos¬ 
sible. 20. When you will have sent me all the 
information, I shall make up my mind. 21. When 
he will have sent his answer to you, you will notify 
me. 22. I would send you flowers every day, if you 
lived near. 23. Would you send me flowers, if I 
lived near? 24. We would send you some. 25. 
They would send you some. 26. I would have sent 
you some. 27. Would you have sent her flowers? 
28. Would you not have sent her flowers? 29. We 
would have sent for the doctor if you had been ill. 
30. I must send for the doctor. 31. It is better that 
you send for the doctor. 32. Is it not better that 
we send for the doctor? 33. I am very glad that 
you have dropped him a line. 34. We are very 
glad that he has sent him his regards. 35. Send 
him that book. 36. Do not send him that book. 
37. Let us send it to-day. 38. When sending him 
word, remember me to him. 39. Do not forget to 
send him all he asks. 


TWENTY-SIXTH LESSON 
Etre—To be 

Principal parts: Etre, etant, ete, je suis, je fus. 

Etre en train de—to be engaged in, to be in the act 
of. 

Etre a meme de—to be able to. Ex.: Je suis a 
meme de vous preter cette somme—I am able to 
lend you that sum. 



French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


41 


Etre au courant de— to be posted on, to know how 
things go on, to be acquainted with. Ex.: Etes- 
vous au courant de la politique du pays?—Are 
you acquainted with the politics of the country? 

Etre en proie a— to be a prey to. 

Etre de l’avis de— to agree with. Ex.: Je suis de 
l’avis de votre pere—I agree with your father. 
Je suis de votre avis—I agree with you. 

Etre convenu de— to have agreed. Ex.: Nous 
sommes convenus de passer l’ete ensemble—We 
have agreed to spend the summer together. 

Etre en avance— to be early. 

Etre en retard— to be late. 

Etre de retour— to be back. 

Etre enrhume— to have a cold. 

N’y etre pour rien— to have nothing to do with it. 
Ex.: Je n’y suis pour rien—I have nothing to do 
with it. 

Y etre— to be at home, to be ready. Ex.: J’y suis 
toujours pour vous—I am always at home for you. 

N’etre pas si bete— To know better. Ex.: Je me 
garderai bien de faire cela, je ne suis pas si bete— 
I shall take care not to do that. I know better. 

N’etre pas dans son assiette— to be out of sorts. 

Etre prevenu contre— to be prejudiced against. 

XXYI 

1. Are you able to give me this information? 2. 

My parents are able to give you this information. 

3. You have a cold to-day. 4. They have a cold. 

5. We are (engaged in) making an inventory. 6. 

My father is acquainted with all that was going on. 

7. He was prejudiced against you. 8. Was he back 


42 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


when my letter came? 9. I did not enjoy myself 
very much. I was out of sorts. 10. We were scolded 
because we were late. 11. You were not late, you 
were early. 12. We have agreed to go to the coun¬ 
try together. 13. Have you been able to do him 
that service? 14. He has been a prey to horrible 
sufferings. 15. I said that we had to leave early, 
and all my comrades agreed with me. 16. If he 
had agreed with me, I would have told you. 17. 
If you had been posted on politics, that would not 
have astonished you. 18. He will soon be ac¬ 
quainted with the business. 19. We will soon be 
back. 20. When you come back, we will be (en¬ 
gaged in) moving. 21. Madam will not be-at home, 
if you do not leave at once. 22. If you always had 
the same ideas on this matter, I would always agree 
with you. 23. Would you agree with me? 24. 
Would you have agreed with me, if I had proposed 
to take this step? 25. Everybody would have 
agreed with you. 26. It is too bad that you have a 
cold; I wanted to ask you to sing us something. 
27. It is proper that we should be posted on what 
has happened. 28. It is to be regretted that you 
were late. 29. Be acquainted with everything be¬ 
fore joining that company. 30. It is better to be 
early. 31. I continue the dictation. Are you ready? 
32. I am ready. 33. Do as you wish, I do not want 
to have anything to do with it. 34. I have nothing 
to do with it. 35. He has nothing to do with it. 
36. You did not do that, did you? I know better. 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


43 


TWENTY-SEVENTH LESSON 

Faire—To do, to make 

Principal parts : Faire, faisant, fait, je fais, je fis. 
Faire une promenade— to take a walk. 

Faire faire —to have made, to cause to be made. 
Ex.: Je fais faire un manteau—I am having a 
cloak made. 

Faire de —to do with. Ex.: Que voulez-vous faire 
de ce livre—What do you want to do with that 
book? 

XXVII 

1. What are you doing? 2. What is he doing? 
3. Do you not know what we are doing? 4. They 
do nothing all day long. 5. Do you not take a walk 
every morning? 6. She has her dresses made in 
Paris. 7. Where do you have your dresses made? 
8. I have them made in Paris. 9. Formerly, I had 
them made in New York. 10. She had them made 
in New York. 11. We were taking a walk in the 
park, when we met her. 12. What have you done 
with the book I gave you ? 13. I do not know what 

I did with it. 14. He does not know what he has 
done with it. 15. Where did you have that dress 
made? 16. I had it made in Paris. 17. If you had 
had that dress made in Paris, it would have cost 
you less. 18. I had already taken a walk, when 
you came. 19. What will you do this afternoon? 
20. I do not know as yet what I shall do. 21. 
Where will she have her wedding dress made? 22. 
She will have it made here. 23. When she will 
have taken a walk, she will feel better. 24. Will 


44 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


you not feel better, when you will have taken a 
walk? 25. If I were rich I would have my dresses 
made in Paris. 26. She would not have her dresses 
made here. 27. Would you not take a walk, if your 
friends came to get you? 28. What would you do 
with that money, if I gave it to you? 29. What 
would you have done with that money, if I had 
given it to you? 30. I do not know what I should 
have done with it. 31. What would she have done 
with it? 32. What do you wish me to do with those 
books? 33. The doctor exacts that we take a walk 
every morning. 34. It is better that you do that at 
once. 35. Are you not glad I did that? 36. It is 
to be regretted that you did that without consult¬ 
ing me. 37. Have that dress made in Paris. 38. 
She congratulated me for having done my duty 
without the least hesitation. 39. In doing good to 
others, you will earn the esteem of the world. 


TWENTY-EIGHTH LESSON 
Faire (continued) 

Faire cas de or grand cas de— to think a great deal 
of. Ex.: II fait grand cas de vos conseils—He 
thinks a great deal of your advice. 

Faire peu de cas de— to think a little of. 

Ne faire aucun cas de— to think nothing of. 

Faire semblant— to make believe. Ex.: II fait sem- 
blant d’etre malade—He makes believe he is ill. 

En faire autant— to do the same. Ex.: Si vous allez 
la, j’enferai autant—If you go there, I shall do 
the same. 



French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


45 


Faire attendre —to keep waiting. 

Faire la sourde oreille —to turn a deaf ear. 

Faire faire du mauvais sang a—To annoy, to worry, 
to cause a good deal of annoyance to. 

Faire d’une pierre deux coups— to kill two birds 
with one stone. 

Faire de son mieux— to do one’s best. Ex.: Je fais 
de mon mieux pour lui etre agreable—I do my 
best to please him. 

Faire tout son possible— to do all that one can. 
Ex.: Je ferai tout mon possible pour etre ici a cinq 
heures—I shall do all I can to be here at five 
o ’clock. 

Je fais ce que bon me semble—I do what I please. 
II fait ce que bon lui semble—He does what he 
pleases. 

Faire l’affaire de (faire mon or votre affaire)— to 

be the thing for, to do for. Ex.: Cette bonne fera 
1’affaire de votre mere—That girl will do for 
your mother. Cette bonne fera son affaire—That 
girl will do for her. 

II fait jour— It is daylight. 

II fait nuit— It is dark. 

Cela ne fait rien— That does not matter. 

Cela ne me fait rien—I do not care. 

Qu ’est-ce que cela me fait?— What is that to me? 

What do I care? 

C’en est fait— It is all over. 

XXVIII 

1. He thinks a great deal of you. 2. We think 
little of him. 3. They think nothing of your ad- 


46 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


vice. 4. I make believe to listen to him. 5. She 
always does as she pleases. 6. We do as we please. 
7. Do you always do as you please? 8. Why do 
you turn a deaf ear on me? 9. This child causes 
his mother a great deal of worry. 10. At this time 
of the year, it is daylight at five o’clock. 11. I 
turned a deaf ear on him and my friend did the 
same. 12. You have done the same. 13. They 
have done the same. 14. Do the same. 15. He 
thought nothing of the present I sent him. 16. He 
kept us waiting. 17. You must not keep us waiting, 
18. If I go to Paris, I shall first have a good time 
and then I shall see my customers; I shall kill two 
birds with one stone. 19. I would do the same, if 
I went there. 20. Would you do the same? 21. 
Would you not do the same? 22. Would you not 
have done the same? 23. Do you want me to do 
the same? 24. I shall do as I please. 25. She will 
do as she pleases. 26. We shall do as we please. 
27. Will you do as you please? 28. I did as I 
pleased. 29. Did she do as she pleased? 30. Do 
you think that they thought a great deal of your 
present? 31. They thought nothing of it. 32. 
What is that to you? 33. You do not care. 34. It 
was dark when we returned home. 35. We shall 
remain out until it is dark. 36. Will you do the 
same? 37. Let us do the same. 38. That child will 
cause Jhis parents a great deal of worry. 39. I am 
much afraid that he will cause them a great deal of 
worry when he grows up. 40. This will do for me. 
41. That book is the thing for me. 42. It would 
certainly do for your friend. 43. It is all over, I 
have lost my money. 44. I did all I could to save 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


47 


you from this trouble. 45. I shall do my best to 
please you. 46. You have done your best. 


TWENTY-NINTH LESSON 

Faire (continued) 

Faire du bien a —to agree with, to do good to. Ex.: 
L’air de la campagne vous fera du bien—The 
country air will agree with you. 

Faire de la peine a—to grieve, to hurt the feelings 
of. Ex.: Yous ferez de la peine a votre ami, si 
vous lui dites cela—You will hurt your friend’s 
feelings, if you tell him that. 

Faire mieux de— to have better. Ex.: Yous feriez 
mieux de rester ici—You had better stay here. 

Faire naufrage— to be shipwrecked, to be wrecked. 

Faire fete a— to give a hearty welcome to. 

Faire du mal a or faire mal a— to hurt. Ex.: Yous 
faites du mal a cet enfant—You hurt that child. 
Yous lui faites mal au bras—You hurt his arm. 

Faire honneur a— to be a credit to. 

Faire un coup de tete— to do a mad action, a rash 
act. 

Faire son chemin— To get on in the world. 

Faire naitre— to give rise to. Ex.: Cela fera naitre 
des soupcons—That will give rise to suspicions. 

Faire venir l’eau a la bouche— to make one’s mouth 
water. 

N’en rien faire— to do nothing of the kind. Ex.: 
Je n’en ferai rien—I shall do nothing of the kind. 



48 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


XXIX 

1. The mountain air agrees with you. 2. The 
mountain air agrees with him. 3. Does the moun¬ 
tain air agree with them? 4. Let go of my hand. 
You hurt me. 5. She hurts me. 6. These two boys 
are a credit to their family. 7. Do not speak of 
that to me. You make my mouth water. 8. Do I not 
make your mouth water? 9. I understood that I 
was hurting his feelings. 10. I understood that she 
was hurting his feelings. 11. The sea air did us 
good. 12. Did the sea air do you good? 13. That 
young man has got along in the world. 14. You 
have got along in the world. 15. Did they not get 
along in the world? 16. Everybody gave them a 
hearty welcome. 17. They gave us a hearty wel¬ 
come. 18. He did a rash act, when he left his 
family. 19. You have done a rash act, which you 
will regret later. 20. The child was crying because 
I had hurt him. 21. How did you hurt him? 22. 
You had better remain here. 23. Had he not better 
remain here? 24. When they will have given rise 
to suspicions in his mind, they will not be so well 
treated. 25. When you will have given rise to sus¬ 
picions in his mind, you will not be so well treated. 
26. Had you not better write to him? 27. We had 
better write to him. 28. I would do nothing of the 
kind. 29. We would do nothing of the kind. 30. 
He would have been a credit to his family, if he had 
lived. 31. You would have done credit to your 
family. 32. We would have done better to speak 
to him. 33. Had I told that to you, I would have 
made your mouth water. 34. You would have hurt 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


49 


my feelings. 35. They are afraid that boat will be 
wrecked. 36. It is possible that it was wrecked on 
the rocks of this coast. 37. Do yon think he will 
get on in the world? 38. I am delighted you have 
got on in the world. 39. Do not hurt him. 40. Let 
us not do that rash act. 41. They will not fail to 
give him a hearty welcome. 42. After having hurt 
him, you try to console him. 43. Why do you not 
offer us something, after having made our mouths 
water ? 


THIRTIETH LESSON 
Se faire—to become 

Principal parts: Se faire, se faisant, s’etant fait, je 
me fais, je me fis. 

Se faire —to become. Ex.: Mon fils veut se faire 
medecin—My son wants to become a physician. 

Se faire a— to become used to. Ex.: Je ne peux pas 
me faire a ce climat—I cannot become used to 
this climate. 

S’y faire— to become used to it or to them. Ex.: 
Je commence a m’y faire—I begin to get used 
to it. 

Se faire du mauvais sang— to be annoyed, to fret. 
Ex.: II se fait du mauvais sang a cause de son fils 
—He is very much annoyed on account of his son. 

Se faire jour— to come to light, to break through. 

Se faire moquer de soi— to make a fool of one’s 
self. Ex.: Je me suis fait moquer de moi—I 
made a fool of myself. Vous vous ferez moquer 
de vous—You will make a fool of yourself. 



50 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


II se fait tard— It is getting late. 

Comment, se fait-il que. . .—How is it that... 

II peut se faire que. . .—It may be that.. ., It may 

happen that.. . 

XXX 

1. I have been told that yon are becoming used to 
the climate of this country. 2. Yes, I am becoming 
used to it. 3. We are becoming used to it. 4. He 
is becoming used to it. 5. I was becoming used to 
the ways of this country, when I had to leave it. 
6. We were becoming used to the ways of this coun¬ 
try, when we had to go. 7. They were becoming 
used to it. 8. Did you become used to American 
cooking? 9. I have not yet become used to it. 10. 
She has not yet become used to it. 11. What has 
become of this young man ? He has become a 
lawyer. 12. They have become doctors. 13. I had 
become used to the voice of that man. 14. I had 
not yet become used to it. 15. If we had become 
used to the climate of that country, we would have 
remained there. 16. I shall never become used to 
this way of living. 17. You will become used to it. 
18. We shall become used to it. 19. They will be¬ 
come used to it. 20. She will never become used to 
it. 21. When I shall have become used to the 
climate of this country, I shall have to leave it. 22. 
When she will have become used to it, she will have 
to go. 23. I would become used to his ways of 
acting, if I remained with him. 24. You would 
become used to them. 25. You would never become 
used to them. 26. She would become used to them 
27. She would never become used to them. 28. 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


51 


Would you not become used to them? 29. I would 
have become used to his character, if I had con¬ 
tinued to see him. 30. Would you have become 
used to it? 31. Would you not have become used 
to it? 32. He would have become a soldier, if he 
had had his own way. 33. Do you wish him to 
become a priest? 34. I do not think you will ever 
become used to his character. 35. It will take a 
long time, before we become used to his character. 
36. It may be that he has become used to this cook¬ 
ing, but I doubt it. 37. I cannot become used to the 
voice of that man. 38. Does he not wish to become 
a lawyer? 39. They congratulated him for having 
become a lawyer. 40. That child behaves so badly 
that the parents are very much annoyed. 41. They 
would be very much annoyed, if they knew that. 
42. Truth comes to light sooner or later. 43. Let 
us go home, it is getting dark. 44. He made a fool 
of himself. 45. Do not make a fool of yourself. 
46. How is it that you come so late? 47. It may be 
that we go to Europe. 


THIRTY-FIRST LESSON 

Falloir—To be necessary 
Principal parts: Falloir, fallu, il faut, il fallut. 
Other meanings 

Il me faut, il te faut, il lui faut, il nous faut, il vous 
faut, il leur faut—I must, etc., I am obliged, etc., 
I need, etc., It takes me, etc. Ex.: Il me faut 
acheter un chapeau—I must buy a hat. Il me 



52 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


faut un chapeau—I need a hat. II me faut une 
heure pour venir ici—It takes me an hour to come 
here. 

II me fallait, etc.— I needed it, I was in need of, It 
took me (used to take me), etc. 

II me fallut, etc.— I needed, etc., It took me, etc. 

II m’a fallu, etc.— I needed, etc., It took me, It has 
taken me, etc. 

II m’avait fallu, etc.—I had needed, etc., It had 
taken me, etc. 

II me faudra, etc.—I shall need, etc., It will take 
me, etc. 

II m’aura fallu, etc.—I shall have needed, etc., It 
will have taken me, etc. 

II me faudrait, etc.—I would need, etc., It would 
take me, etc. 

II m’aurait fallu, etc.—I would have needed, etc., It 
would have taken me, etc. 

II m’eut fallu, etc.—I would have needed etc., It 
would have taken me, etc. 

Qu’il me faille, etc.—That I need, etc., That it takes 
or will take me, etc. 

Qu’il m’ait fallu, etc.—That I needed, etc., That it 
took me, etc. 

XXXI 

1. One must eat to live, and not live to eat. 2. 

I must buy a hat. 3. Do you need another hat? 

4. Tell me what you need ? 5. I require a half hour 

to come here. 6. How long does it take you to 

come here? 7. Did you tell him what you wanted? 

8. I told him that I wanted another pair of shoes. 

9. As it was raining very hard, I was obliged to buy 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


53 


an umbrella. 10. He was obliged to buy an um¬ 
brella. 11. How long did it take you to come here ? 
12. It took us a half hour. 13. It took them a half 
hour. 14. I told him that it had taken me three 
quarters of an hour. 15. If I had been obliged to 
remain, I would have fallen ill. 16. We shall be 
obliged to leave early in the morning. 17. He will 
need a pair of gloves. 18. How long will it take 
you to write this letter? 19. I shall not take more 
than ten minutes. 20. It would be necessary to buy 
a saddle horse. 21. What would you need to make 
this trip? 22. I would need two thousand dollars. 
23. How long would it take you to dress? 24. I 
would need a half hour. 25. Would it have taken 
you long to dress? 26. Would it have taken him 
long? 27. It would only have taken us a few min¬ 
utes. 28. Do you think it will take her long? 29. 
I do not think it will take you all that time. 30. I 
am surprised it has taken you all that time. 


THIRTY-SECOND LESSON 

Falloir (continued) 

S’en falloir—to be far from. 

II s’en faut de beaucoup que je...—I am far 
from... Ex.: II s’en faut de beaucoup que je 
sois riche—I am far from being rich. 

II s’en faut de beaucoup qu’il.. . —He is far from.. . 
II s’en faut de beaucoup que nous...—We are far 
from. . . 

II s’en faut de beaucoup que vous.. .—You are far 

from. . . 



54 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


II s’en faut de beaucoup qu’ils...—They are far 
from... . 

Tant s’en faut—Far from it. Ex.: Je ne suis pas 
riche, tant s’en faut—I am not rich—far from it. 
Peu s’en faut—Nearly, not far from it. Ex.: Peu 
s’en faut qu’il ne soit aussi grand que son frere— 
He is nearly as tall as his brother. S’il n’est pas 
aussi grand que son frere, peu s’en faut—If he is 
not as tall as his brother, he is not far from it. 

II le faut—That must be done. 

II fallait voir or II aurait fallu voir—You should 
have seen. Ex.: II fallait or II aurait fallu voir 
comme il nous a regus—You should have seen 
how he received us. 

II faudrait voir—You should see. 

XXXII 

1. I am far from being pleased with this servant. 
2. He is far from suiting me. 3. We are far from 
being as rich as our friends. 4. I nearly fell. 5. 
I nearly drowned. 6. If he is not so rich as his 
brother, he is not far from it. 7. They are not 
pleased—far from it. 8. They were not satisfied— 
far from it. 9. I shall write this article, if it must 
be done. 10. I would follow them, if it had to be 
done. 11. Would you follow them, if it had to be 
done? 12. You should have seen his face, when I 
told him the news. 13. You should see how he lis¬ 
tens to me. 14. You should have seen how every 
one worked when I was there. 15. If he is not as 
rich as his brother, he must not be far from it. 
16. You are far from having made as many errors 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


55 


as your friend. 17. You have not made as many~ 
errors as your friend—far from it. 18. He nearly 
missed the train. 19. Did you miss the train? No, 
hut I nearly did. 20. I do not know all my French 
verbs as yet,—far from it. 


THIRTY-THIRD LESSON 
Se fier a—To trust 

Principal parts: Se fier, se fiant, s’etant fie, je me 
fie, je me fiai. 

S’y fier— to trust him, her, it, them. 

XXXII 

1. I do not trust him. 2. Do you not trust that 
man? 3. He trusts no one. 4. We trust him. 5. 
When I was younger, I trusted everyone. 6. She 
trusted everyone. 7. We trusted everyone. 8. I 
trusted that man a long time. 9. She has always 
trusted her servants. 10. Did you not trust that 
chambermaid for a long time? 11. I had unfortu¬ 
nately trusted her. 12. If you had trusted that man, 
that would not have happened. 13. If they had 
trusted me, they would not have lost so much money. 
14. In future, I shall no longer trust anyone. 15. Do 
not say that, you shall certainly trust me. 16. Her 
affairs will be in better condition, when she will 
have trusted him. 17. If you were willing to take 
charge of my affairs, I would trust you entirely. 
18. Would you trust me? 19. Would you not trust 
me? 20. If this horse belonged to me, I think that 



56 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


I would trust it. 21. She would trust it. 22. I 
would have trusted you, if you had been willing to 
take charge of this affair. 23. Would you have 
trusted me? 24. Would you not have trusted your 
brother? 25. We would have trusted no one. 26. 
It is not prudent that you trust everybody. 27. Is 
it not better that I trust my lawyer? 28. It is very 
fortunate that you have trusted him. 29. It is too 
bad that we did not trust him. 30. It is a good 
horse. Trust it. 31. You can trust him. 32. I am 
punished for having trusted everybody. 33. Wo¬ 
man is changeable, foolish is he who trusts her. 


THIRTY-FOURTH LESSON 

Lire—To read 

Principal parts: Lire, lisant, lu, je lis, je lus. 

XXXIY 

1. What are you reading just now? 2. I am 

reading a very interesting work. 3. She never 

reads in the evening. 4. We read only in the even¬ 
ing. 5. They never read during the day. 6. Were 
you not reading aloud when I entered? 7. I was 

reading aloud. 8. We read a great deal in the 

country. 9. She did not read much. 10. If they 
read a little every day they would make more 
progress. 11. What did you read in the class¬ 
room? 12. We have read quite a few books. 13. 
Has he read the paper? 14. He has read it. 15. 
Have they read this letter? 16. They have read it. 



French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


57 


17, I have not read it. 18. If you had read it, you 
would know what has happened. 19. If she had 
read it, she would know what has happened. 20. 
If we had read it, we would know what has hap¬ 
pened. 21. I shall read it presently. 22. Will you 
read it with pleasure? 23. We shall read it with 
pleasure. 24. I shall give it back to you, when I 
shall have read it. 25. She will give it back to you, 
when she will have read it. 26. Would you read it, 
if I gave it to you? 27. I would read it imme¬ 
diately. 28. We would read the paper with pleas¬ 
ure. 29. They would read it with pleasure. 30. 
Would you not read it with pleasure? 31. Would 
you not have read it with pleasure? 32. We would 
have read it, if we could have procured it. 33. Do 
you wish me to read aloud? 34. Do you not wish 
that we read aloud? 35. He has sent us this book 
so that we read it before we leave. 36. I am glad 
that you have read it. 37. She is delighted that 
we have read her article. 38. Read it. 39. Do not 
read it before her. 40. You will return it to me 
after having read it. 41. You will learn a great 
deal by reading the books I have sent you. 


THIRTY-FIFTH LESSON 
Mettre—To put 

Principal parts : Mettre, mettant, mis, je mets, je 
mis. 

Mettre— to put on. 

Mettre au courant de— to acquaint with, to inform 



58 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


of. Ex.: Je vous mettrai au courant de tout—I 
shall acquaint you with everything. 

Mettre a meme de— to enable. Ex.: Je vous mettrai 
a meme de payer cette note—I will enable you to 
pay that bill. 

Mettre a la porte— to send away. Ex.: Mettez ce 
domestique a la porte—Send that servant away. 

XXXY 

1. What sort of dress do you put on to go to 
theater? 2. I put on my lace dress. 3. Does she 
not put on her new dress? 4. Do you not put on 
your gloves before going out? 5. She puts on her 
gloves before going out. 6. They put on their 
gloves before going out. 7. I w^as putting on my 
gloves to go out when she came. 8. Were you 
putting on your gloves to go out? 9. Was she not 
putting on her gloves? 10. Where did you put my 
umbrella? 11. I put it in that corner. 12. Where 
has she put my parasol? 13. She has put it in that 
corner. 14. Did she not put it in that corner? 15. 
She did not put it in that corner. 16. What dress 
has she put on? 17. She had already put on her 
gloves to go out. 18. They had already put on 
their gloves to go out. 19. If you had put this book 
on this table, you would find it. 20. Will you put 
on your velvet dress? 21. I shall put on my white 
dress. 22. What dress will she put on? 23. When 
she will have put on her hat, we shall leave. 24. 
As soon as they will have set foot on French soil, 
they will be happy. 25. Would you put all your 
money in that enterprise, if you were in my place? 
26. I would never place all my eggs in the same 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


59 


basket. 27. She would place her fortune at my 
disposal, if I wished it. 28. She would not have 
put on that dress, if she had known it would be so 
warm. 29. Would you have put on that dress, if 
you had known there would be so many people? 
30. I would not have put it on. 31. What dress do 
you wish me to put on? 32. Where do you wish us 
to put our things? 33. It is well that you put them 
in a safe place. 34. I fear that you have not put 
them in a safe place. 35. Are you glad that I put 
them there? 36. Put your things on that table. 
37. Do not put them there. 38. After having put 
your things in that room, you will come down to 
the parlor. 39. I acquainted you with all that has 
occurred. 40. I shall acquaint you with all the 
particulars. 41. She sent her cook away. 42. Why 
did she send her away? 43. He will enable you to 
pay all your debts. 


THIRTY-SIXTH LESSON 

Se mettre a—To begin, to set about 

Principal parts: Se mettre, se mettant, s’etant mis, 
je me mets, je me mis. 

Se mettre a —to begin, to set about. Ex.: Mettez- 
vous au travail—Set about work. 

S’y mettre— to set about it. Ex.: Je m’y mettrai 
tout a l’heure—I will set about it presently. 

Se mettre en colere— to get angry. 

Se mettre en route— to start, to set off. 

Se mettre en tete de— to take it into one’s head. 
Ex.: II s’est mis en tete de me parler toujours 



60 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


francais—He took it into his head to always speak 
French to me. 

Se mettre bien— to dress well. 

Se mettre en quatre pour— to sacrifice one’s self for. 
Ex.: Cette femme se mettrait en quatre pour ses 
enfants—That woman would sacrifice herself for 
her children. 

XXXVI 

1. At what time do you begin to work? 2. I 
begin at nine o’clock. 3. He begins at nine o’clock. 
4. We never begin before nine o’clock. 5. He gets 
angry for the least thing. 6. You never get angry. 
7. He began to laugh every time that man opened 
his mouth. 8. We started off every morning at 
eight o’clock. 9. They started off before us. 10. 
At what time did you set to work? 11. 1 set about 
it early. 12. He began early. 13. Did you begin 
before me? 14. Did you not begin before me? 15. 
Why did he get angry? 16. At what time did they 
set out? 17. Did they not start before us? 18. 
They had already started off when we arose. 
19. Had you already begun to work? 20. If they 
had begun work at 9 o’clock, they would have 
already finished. 21. He will begin to laugh, if you 
speak thus to him. 22. You will not get angry, if 
I do that? 23. We shall start off at dawn. 24. As 
soon as he will have begun to work, we shall leave 
the room. 25. Would you begin to laugh, if every¬ 
body laughed? 26. Would you not begin to laugh? 

27. Would he set to work, if it were necessary? 

28. He would set about it. 29. We would set about 
it. 30. We would have set about it, if it had been 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


61 


necessary. 31. You would have set about it, if it 
had been necessary. 32. Set about it at once. 33. 
Do not set about it so soon. 34. Do you wish me to 
set about it at once ? 35. Do you not wish us to set 

about it at once? 36. They will not finish to-night, 
unless they set about it at once. 37. You are glad 
that I set about it at once? 38. I am sorry that the 
children began to laugh when he entered. 39. One 
must not get angry. 40. He took it into his head to 
write a book. 41. That lady always dresses well. 
42. She dressed well for your evening party. 43. 
He would sacrifice himself for his friend. 44. I 
would have sacrificed myself for you. 


THIRTY-SEVENTH LESSON 
Offrir—To offer 

Principal parts : Offrir, off rant, off ert, j ’offre, 
j ’offris. 

XXXVII 

1. It is with pleasure that I offer you that bou¬ 
quet. 2. He offers it to you with pleasure. 3. We 
offer it to you. 4. Do you not offer it to me with 
pleasure? 5. Do you not offer it to her with pleas¬ 
ure? 6. When she was ill I offered her flowers 
every day. 7. People offered her flowers every day. 
8. Did you offer her some every day? 9. I offered 
her my respects. 10. Did you offer her you# re¬ 
spects? 11. What did you offer her? 12. How 
many bouquets did he offer her? 13. He has offered 
her a good number. 14. I do not know whether we 



62 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


have offered her as many as you? 15. She would 
have been very happy if you had offered her some 
flowers. 16. I had offered her a box of candies. 
17. Had he not offered her some candies? 18. 
What will you offer her if she comes? 19. I shall 
offer her refreshments. 20. He will offer her re¬ 
freshments. 21. When they will have offered us 
refreshments, we shall leave. 22. When I shall 
have offered you refreshments, you may go. 23. I 
would offer her my arm, if she came. 24. He would 
offer her his arm, if she came. 25. Would you 
not offer her your arm? 26. I would have offered 
her my arm to step into the dining room. 27. 
Would you have offered her your arm? 28. Would 
you not have offered her your arm? 29. Would he 
not have offered her his arm? 30. What do you 
wish me to offer you? 31. I want you to offer me 
your arm. 32. It is proper that you offer him 
something. 33. I am delighted that you have 
offered him something. 34. Are you not glad that 
I offered him something? 35. 1 very much doubt 
that they offered him anything. 36. Offer her your 
arm. 37. What shall I do after having offered her 
my arm? 


THIRTY-EIGHTH LESSON 

Ouvrir—To open 

Principal parts: Ouvrir, ouvrant, ouvert, j’ouvre* 
j ’ouvris. 

XXXVIII 

1. I always open the window of my room before 



French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 63 

retiring. 2. She opens it also. 3. Do you open it? 
4. Do you not open it? 5. We always open it. 
6. I was opening the door to go out, when the post¬ 
man handed me my mail. 7. Were you not open¬ 
ing the door to go out? 8. Yes, I was opening it. 
9. She was opening it. 10. They were opening it. 
11. Did you not open the window? 12. I have 
opened it. 13. She has opened it. 14. We have 
not opened it. 15. They only opened it on going 
out. 16. When did he open it? 17. Why did you 
not open it? 18. If you had opened the box, you 
would have seen what there was in it. 19. She 
would have seen it, if she had opened it. 20. I 
shall not open it. 21. She will not open it. 22. 
Will you not open it? 23. We shall not open it. 
24. When you will have opened that package, you 
will know who sends it to you. 25. When I shall 
have opened it, I shall know it. 26. Would you 
open the door, if you heard the bell ring? 27. I 
would open it. 28. We would open it. 29. They 
would not open it. 30. I would certainly have 
opened my mail, if I had had the time. 31. Would 
you have opened it? 32. Would he have opened it? 
33. We would not have opened it. 34. Do you 
want us to open the windows? 35. I would much 
like to have you open them. 36. He wants us to 
open them. 37. I am surprised that you have not 
opened the paper. 38. It is seldom that we open 
the paper before breakfast. 39. Are you not sur¬ 
prised he has opened his book? 40. Open it. 41. 
Do not open it. 42. By keeping your eyes wide 
open, you will see what is going on. 


64 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


THIRTY-NINTH LESSON 

Partir—To leave, to depart 

Principal parts: Partir, partant, parti, je pars, je 
partis. 

Partir d’un eclat de rire— to burst out laughing. 
Ex.: II est parti d’un eclat de rire—He burst out 
laughing. 

XXXIX 

1. When are you leaving for France? 2. We are 
going in a week. 3. He always leaves the first week 
in June. 4. We leave only at the end of the month. 
5. They never leave before us. 6. I was unable to 
speak to him; he was leaving for the country. 7. 
We were leaving for the country when your tele¬ 
gram reached us. 8. Were you leaving for the 
country? 9. When did he leave? 10. He left 
yesterday. 11. Last year, we left the first of June. 
12. Why did you leave so soon? 13. I burst out 
laughing when he told me that. 14. He burst out 
laughing. 15. I was unable to see him; he had left 
for the country. 16. If you had left your home 
sooner, you would not have missed the train. 17. 
To-morrow, we shall leave earlier. 18. He will 
leave before you. 19. They will only leave after 
you. 20. The music will cease playing when the 
president will have left. 21. Everyone will miss 
her when she has left. 22. Would you not leave at 
once, if it were necessary? 23. I would leave this 
instant, if I could. 24. He would leave this instant, 
if it were necessary. 25. We would leave at once, 
if you were not here. 26. I would have left at once, 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


65 


if it had been necessary. 27. Would you have left 
sooner, if you could have done so? 28. Would you 
not have left sooner? 29. They would have left 
sooner, if it had been necessary. 30. It suffices that 
you leave to-morrow morning. 31. Do you not wish 
me to leave at once? 32. He requires that we leave 
this very day. 33. I am afraid that he will burst 
out laughing. 34. We are very glad that they have 
left before us. 35. Do not leave so soon. 36. I 
know very well that I did wrong to burst out laugh¬ 
ing. 37. I betrayed myself by bursting out laughing. 


FORTIETH LESSON 

Se passer de—To do without 

Principal parts: Se passer, se passant, s’etant passe, 
je me passe, je me passai. 

S’en passer—to do without it or them. Ex.: Si je 
n’ai pas de fleurs, je m’en passerai—If I have no 
flowers, I shall do without them. 

Se passer—to take place, to go on, to happen. Ex.: 
Dites-moi ce qui se passe—Tell me what is going 
on. 

Passer chez—to call on. Ex.: Passerez-vous chez 
elle aujourd hui?—Will you call on her to-day? 
En passer par—to submit to. Ex.: Je suis oblige 
d’en passer par la—I am obliged to submit to it. 

XL 

1. I do without him when it is necessary. 2. If 
I have no wine, I do without it very easily. 3. He 
willingly does without it. 4. We do without it. 



66 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


5. Do you do without it without complaining? 6. 
What is going on? 7. Something always happens 
when I am not around. 8. I willingly did without 
the evening papers, when I was in the country. 
9. If we did not have the evening papers, we did 
without them. 10. What has happened? 11. Tell 
me what happened last night? 12. We were unable 
to get certain things; we did without them. 13. She 
•did without them like us. 14. Did you not do with¬ 
out them, just as we did? 15. I had done without 
it in preceding years; I did not have much trouble 
to do without it. 16. He had quite often done with¬ 
out it. 17. If there are no papers I shall do without 
them. 18. We shall do without them. 19. Will 
you do without them without complaining ? 20. 

When you will have done without smoking for a 
few days, you will feel better. 21. Would you do 
without smoking, if you were sick? 22. I would do 
without it very easily. 23. He would do without it. 
24. I would have done without this pencil, if you 
had asked me for it. 25. Would you have done 
without it? 26. Would you not have done without 
it? 27. Do you want me to do without it? 28. I 
wish you to do without it. 29. We must do with¬ 
out it. 30. I am grieved that all that should have 
taken place in my absence. 31. I am surprised you 
did without him so long. 32. If you have no letter 
paper, do without it. 33. It is not easy to do with¬ 
out it. 34. Can you not do without it? .35. We 
can do without it. 36. He will have to submit to it. 
37. He will submit to whatever you like. 38. I will 
call on you some time to-day. 39. It is better you 
call on her. 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 67 

FORTY-FIRST LESSON 
Peindre—To paint 

Principal parts: Peindre, peignant, peint, je peins, 
je peignis. 

XLI 

1. This painter paints animals well. 2. Does he 
paint landscapes also? 3. Do yon paint a little 
every day? 4. I paint a little every day. 5. We 
paint a little every day. 6. Do modern painters 
paint as well as those of the Renaissance? 7. The 
Dutch painters painted admirably. 8. Rousseau 
painted landscapes well. 9. I painted flowers when 
I was at school. 10. Who painted “The Horse 
Fair”? 11. Has not Corot painted many land¬ 
scapes ? 12. Do you know who painted that screen ? 

13. I have painted it. 14. Did you paint it quite 
recently? 15. It is two years already since I 
painted it. 16. I had already painted it when I 
married. 17. If you had painted every day, you 
would have become a great artist. 18. If he had 
painted every day, he would have made more 
progress. 19. In future, I shall paint every day. 
20. She will paint every day. 21. Will she not 
paint every day? 22. Will you not paint every 
day? 23. When I shall have painted this chair, you 
will take good care not to sit on it. 24. I would 
paint that bench, if I had a brush. 25. Would you 
paint it if you had a brush? 26/He would not 
paint it. 27. We would paint it. 28. We would 
not paint it. 29. I would have painted this bench 
green, if I had had a brush. 30. Would you have 


68 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


painted yonr cottage, if yon had had a ladder? 
31. I would have painted it. 32. He would have 
painted it. 33. The painters would have painted 
it. 34. Do you wish me to paint that ceiling? 
35. I want you to paint it. 36. He does not want 
us to paint it. 37. I am very glad you have 
painted it in so short a time. 38. Are you not sur¬ 
prised he painted it in so short a time? 39. Paint 
it as soon as possible. 40. After having painted 
that door, it will be varnished. 


FORTY-SECOND LESSON 

Penser—To think 

Principal parts: Penser, pensant, pense, je pense, je 
pensai. 

Penser a—to think of. Ex.: Ne pensez plus a cela— 
Do not think of that any longer. 

Y penser—to think of it. 

Penser de—to think of (to have an opinion of). 
Ex.: Que pensez-vous de ce livre?—What do you 
think of that book? 


XLII 

1. Are you still thinking of doing what I told 
you? 2. I am still (always) thinking of it. 3. 
What does he think of that man? 4. I do not 
know what he -thinks of him. 5. Do you wish to 
know what we think of him? 6. Of what were you 
thinking on board of the transatlantic steamer? 
7. I thought of nothing. 8. We were not thinking 



French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


69 


of anything. 9. Oh, pardon me, I thought of you. 
10. She thought of you. 11. Did you think of me? 
12. Did you not think of her? 13. Did he not 
think of our venture? 14. He thought of it. 15. 
I have often thought of it. 16. We hardly thought 
of it. 17. I would have mailed you a few postal 
cards, if I had thought of it. 18. She would have 
mailed you postal cards, if she had thought of it. 
19. Will you think of posting this letter? 20. I 
shall think of it. 21. She will think of it. 22. We 
shall think of it. 23. What will they think of us? 
24. They will have thought of you many times be¬ 
fore reaching Paris. 25. She will have thought of 
me. 26. Would you think of your business, if you 
were in the country? 27. I would not think of it. 
28. He would not think of it. 29. What would 
people think of me, if I did that ? 30. I would have 

thought of you oftener, if you had written to me. 
31. Would you not have thought of me? 32. Would 
she not have thought of me? 33. What would they 
have thought of me, if I had. not written ? 34. Are 

you afraid that we shall not think of you? 35. I 
am afraid you will not think of me. 36. He is 
delighted that we thought of him. 37. Are you not 
glad that I thought of you? 38. Do not think so 
much about your business. 39. Do not think about 
it any more. 40. You will not be any wiser, after 
having thought of it all day. 


70 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


FORTY-THIRD LESSON 

Permettre—To allow, to permit 

Principal parts: Permettre, permettant, permis, je 
permets, je permis. 

Se permettre—to take the liberty, to dare. Ex.: Je 
me suis permis de vous ecrire—I took the liberty 
to write to you. 

XLIII 

1. Do you allow me to go out? 2. I allow you to 
do so. 3. We allow you to do so. 4. Your parents 
allow you to do so. 5. Our father did not allow us 
to read novels. 6. Our parents did not allow us to 
read novels. 7. I never allowed my daughter to go 
out alone. 8. Did you not permit me to come when 
I would? 9. Yes, I have permitted you to do so. 
10. She has permitted you to do so. 11. We have 
permitted him to do so. 12. The}^ have not per¬ 
mitted him to do so. 13. Did they not permit him 
to do so? 14. I had permitted you to take away 
that hook. 15. Had you permitted me to do so? 
16. Had you not permitted me to do so? 17. Had 
they not permitted us to do so? 18. Will you allow 
me to swim as far as the float? 19. I shall never 
allow you to do so. 20. Your mother will never 
allow you to do so. 21. I shall go out in the even¬ 
ing, when my parents will have permitted me to do 
so. 22. Would you allow me to take away that 
hook, if I found time to read it? 23. I would per¬ 
mit you to do so. 24. We would allow you to do so. 
25. They would allow you to do so. 26. I would 
never have allowed you to swim across the river, if 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


71 


you had asked me. 27. You would never have been 
allowed. 28. You would have allowed me to do so, 
would you not? 29. I am much afraid that he will 
not allow you to come. 30. I shall ask him, until 
he will allow me. 31. I am surprised he has allowed 
you to ride horseback. 32. I am surprised you have 
allowed him to do so. 33. Do not allow him to 
speak English to you. 34. Let us allow him to play 
until five o’clock. 35. I thanked him very much for 
having allowed me to play so long. 36. He took 
the liberty to address me in the street. 37. I am 
surprised he dared to do it. 38. May I dare to 
offer you my arm? 


FORTY-FOURTH LESSON 
Plaindre—To pity 

Principal parts: Plaindre, plaignant, plaint, je 
plains, je plaignis. 

Se plaindre— to complain. 

Se plaindre de— to complain about. 

S’en plaindre— to complain about it. 

XLIY 

1. If you have a toothache, I pity you. 2. Do 
you pity me ? 3. Do you not pity me ? 4. Of what 

does he complain? 5. He is always complaining of 
something. 6. They make me work hard, but I do 
not complain. 7. When he was in college, he always 
complained of something. 8. Of what did you 
complain? 9. I never complained of anything 10. 
Did you not pity me, when you were told of my 



72 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


accident? 11. I pitied you from the bottom of my 
heart. 12. She pitied you. 13. Did she complain 
of anything? 14. They have complained of noth¬ 
ing. 15. They had already complained to the chief 
of police. 16. Of what had they complained? 17. 
She had complained of nothing. 18. Will you not 
pity me, if I must spend all that time in the coun¬ 
try? 19. I shall sincerely pity you. 20. No one 
will pity you. 21. When she will have complained, 
she will be more calm. 22. They will perhaps leave 
you in peace, when you will have complained. 23. 
Would you pity me, if I had to undergo this opera¬ 
tion ? 24. I would pity you with all my heart. 25. 

We would not complain, if we had not been so ill- 
treated. 26. They would not complain. 27. I 
would have pitied you, if you had been there. 
28. Would you have pitied her? 29. I would have 
complained, if I had been in your place. 30. Would 
you not have complained, madam? 31. Of what do 
you want him to complain? 32. Of what do you 
want us to complain? 33. It is better that you do 
not complain. 34. They will make no changes until 
they have complained. 35. They will continue un¬ 
til you have complained. 36. Do not pity me. 37. 
Do not complain. 38. Complain to the mayor of 
the city. 39. Do it without complaining. 


FORTY-FIFTH LESSON 
Plaire—To please, to suit 

Principal parts: Plaire, plaisant, plu, je plais, je 
plus. 

Plait-il?— What did you say? I beg your pardon? 



French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 73 

Se plaire a —to take pleasure in. Ex.: Je me plais 
a taquiner cet enfant—I take pleasure in teasing 
that child. 

Se plaire dans un endroit— to like a place, to be 
pleased. Ex.: Je me plais beaucoup dans ce 
village. 

XLY 

1. Fairy tales please children very much. 2. Do 
you like this village? 3. I like it very much. 4. 
You are a charming woman. I take pleasure in 
telling you. 5. We take pleasure in telling you. 
6. I beg your pardon? 7. Did you like the sea¬ 
shore? 8. I liked it very much. 9. That cham¬ 
bermaid suited my mother very well. 10. I saw 
that valet; he pleased me very much. 11. You 
pleased him. 12. He took pleasure in tormenting 
me. 13. They took pleasure in tormenting me. 
14. Did you like that place? 15. I did not like it. 

16. If I had liked it, I would have remained there. 

17. If the servant had suited us, we would have 
kept him. 18. He will suit you. 19. I think that 
you will like that place. 20. They will like that 
place. 21. You would suit me very well, if you 
knew a little French. 22. I would suit him if I 
knew a little French. 23. Would you not like the 
mountains? 24. I would like them very much. 
25. We would like them very much. 26. I would 
have pleased her, if I had known French. 27. She 
would have pleased me, if she had known French. 
28. I would have taken pleasure in teasing you, if 
you had been there. 29. It suffices that this servant 


74 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


suits you. I shall engage him. 30. It suffices that 
you suit him. 31. He doubts I like that place very 
much. 32. This book must have pleased you very 
much, since you have read it from cover to cover. 
33. I doubt very much that those books have pleased 
you. 34. I shall do all in my power to please you. 


FORTY-SIXTH LESSON 

Pleuvoir—To rain 

Principal parts: Pleuvoir, pleuvant, plu, il pleut, il 
plut. 

Pleuvoir a verse— to pour. 

Pleuvoir— to fall (figuratively—can be used in the 
third person plural. Ex.: Les compliments pleu- 
vaient sur lui—He was overwhelmed with compli¬ 
ments (the compliments were falling on him). 
Faire pleuvoir —to send down, to pour. Ex.: Ils 
faisaient pleuvoir des balles sur nous—They were 
pouring bullets into us. 

XL VI 

1. Is it still raining? 2. It is still raining. 3. It 
is pouring. 4. He is overwhelmed with honors. 
(Honors rain [or fall] on him.) 5. Was it not rain¬ 
ing when you went out? 6. It was pouring. 7. He 
was overwhelmed with compliments. 8. It has 
rained much this year. 9. Has it not rained much? 
10. Has it rained all morning? 11. It had rained 
so much that all the rivers overflowed. 12. If it 
had rained all the morning, they could not have 



French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


75 


played ball. 13. It will not rain to-day. 14. Will 
it not rain, if the wind falls? 15. It will have 
already rained when they will arrive at the station. 
16. Would it rain if the wind fell? 17. Would it 
not rain, if the wind fell? 18. It would pour. 
19. He would be overwhelmed with honors, if he 
came to this country. 20. Would it not have rained, 
if the wind had fallen? 21. It would have rained 
all day. 22. Do you like it better to rain for your 
flowers? 23. I shall come whether it rains or shines. 
24. I am sorry it has rained all night; the roads 
are impassable. 25. It is going to rain. 26. They 
sent down on him a hail of stones. 


FORTY-SEVENTH LESSON 

Pouvoir—To be able, can, may 

Principal parts: Pouvoir, pouvant, pu, je peux, je 
pus. 

N’en pouvoir plus— to be exhausted. Ex.: J’ai 
tellement marche que je n’en peux plus—I have 
walked so much that I am exhausted. 

Je n’y puis rien— I cannot help it. 

Cela se peut— That can be done, that is possible. 

II se peut bien que ... —It may be that... Ex.: II 
se peut bien qu’il vienne aujourd’hui—It may be 
that he will come to-day. 

II se pourrait bien que. .. —It might be that... 

XLVII 

1. Can you come here to-morrow? 2. May I 



76 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


escort you? 3. Can we not stay here? 4. Cannot 
the children go out? 5. I have walked so much 
that I am exhausted. 6. She is exhausted. 7. It 
is very possible that she will apply to you. 8. The 
train is late. I cannot help it. 9. When I was in 
France, I was unable to understand what was said 
to me. 10. Was she unable to understand what was 
said to her? 11. She used to walk all day and, in 
the evening, she was exhausted. 12. I was unable 
to find this word in the dictionary. 13. Have you 
not been able to find it? 14. She was unable to 
come. 15. We were unable to come. 16. Why 
were they unable to come? 17. I would not have 
remained, if I had not been able to see him. 18. 
Would you have remained, if you had not been able 
to see him? 19. I think that she will be unable to 
make that trip. 20. Will you be able to make that 
trip? 21. I shall be unable to be absent during 
the winter. 22. When I shall have been able to get 
that book, I shall send it to you. 23. Could you get 
that book? 24. Could you not stay with us? 25. 
I could accompany you, if there were a seat in your 
carriage. 26. She could accompany us. 27. We 
could do it without too much trouble. 28. It might 
be that he comes to disturb us. 29. I could have 
done it, if you had expressed the wish. 30. She 
could have done it. 31. We could have done it. 
32. Could you have done it? 33. Could you not 
have done it? 34. I send you tickets so that you 
may be able to enter at once. 35. Send us the 
tickets so that we may be able to enter at once. 
36. He does not believe that I shall be able to make 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 77 

myself understood, if I go to France. 37. I am glad 
you were able to make yourself understood. 38. I 
regret that he was unable to accept my invitation. 
39. It is fortunate that I was able to escort her. 


FORTY-EIGHTH LESSON 
Prendre—To take 

Principal parts: Prendre, prenant, pris, je prends, 
je pris. 

Prendre un parti —to take a course, a resolution. 
Ex.: II ne sait quel parti prendre—He does not 
know what course to take (what to do). 

Prendre le parti de, Prendre son parti— to make up 
one’s mind to, to resolve. Ex.: II a pris le parti 
de vivre a la campagne—He made up his mind to 
live in the country. 

Prendre parti pour— to take sides with. Ex.: II a 
pris parti pour son rival—He took sides with his 
rival. 

Prendre quelqu’un en grippe— to take a dislike to 
some one. Ex.: II a pris cet homme en grippe— 
He took a dislike to that man. 

Prendre l’habitude de— to get into the habit of. 

Prendre en flagrant delit— to catch in the very act. 

Prendre son courage a deux mains— to screw up 
one’s courage. 

Prendre la peine de— to take the trouble to, kindly... 

XL VIII 

1. What train do you take? 2. Do you not take 



78 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


the eight o’clock train? 3. I always take the same 
train. 4. He does not take that train. 5. They 
never take that train. 6. I took that train, when I 
had my business down town. 7. What train did 
yon take then? 8. What train did he take? 9. We 
never took the same train. 10. Did you take your 
umbrella? 11. Have you not taken your rubbers? 
12. I have taken all that is necessary. 13. Have 
you made up your mind? 14. Have you not made 
a resolution? 15. We have taken sides with the 
accused. 16. If I had taken my umbrella, I would 
not have got wet. 17. If you had taken your um¬ 
brella, you would not have got wet. 18. Will you 
soon make up your mind? 19. I think they will 
resolve to go to live in the country. 20. If he acts 
in that manner, everybody will take a dislike to him. 
21. When you will have come to a decision, you will 
tell me. 22. Would you take sides with him, if he 
were attacked? 23. I would take sides with him. 
24. Would he not take the carriage, if he wished to 
go to the station? 25. I think he would take it. 
26. We would take it. 27. We would have taken 
the carriage, if we had been in a hurry. 28. Would 
you have taken it? 29. Would you not have taken 
it? 30. They would have taken it. 31. What road 
do you wish us to take? 32. Do you want me to 
take that road? 33. It is better that you take it. 
34. I am very glad that you have taken your rub¬ 
bers; it is likely to rain. 35. He will be pleased 
that we have taken the fast train; we shall arrive 
before noon. 36. Kindly go up to my room. 37. 
After having made up your mind you will feel easier. 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 79 

38. You will gain a full fifteen minutes by taking 
the cross road. 39. Do not get into the habit of 
smoking, my boy. 40. He got into the habit of 
sending me flowers every day. 41. I hesitated for 
some time, but one day I screwed up my courage 
and I spoke to him. 42. He was suspected of steal¬ 
ing for some time, and now he has been caught in 
the act. 


FORTY-NINTH LESSON 
S’en prendre a—to blame 

Principal parts: S’en prendre, s’en prenant, s’en 
etant pris, je m’en prends, je m’en pris. 

S’en prendre a— to blame, to lay the blame on. Ex.: 
Je m’en prendrai a vous—I shall lay the blame on 
you. Je m’en suis pris a la femme de chambre— 
I laid the blame on the chambermaid. 

XLIX 

1. If the children do anything wrong, Madam 
always blames the servant. 2. On whom do you lay 
the blame. 3. I blame you? 4. Do you not blame 
your servants? 5. She always blamed her servants. 
6. We used to blame the coachman every time we 
missed the train. 7. I blamed my lawyer for the 
loss of the suit. 8. Why did you blame him? 9. 
We blamed him. 10. They blamed us. 11. If I 
had blamed him, he would have got angry. 12. 
Would he have got angry, if you had blamed him? 
13. Would he not have got angry, if we had blamed 



80 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


him? 14. If the children touch those flowers, I 
shall blame you. 15. She will blame you. 16. We 
will blame you. 17. Whom will you blame? 18. 
When you will have blamed him, what will you 
have gained? 19. Would you blame me, if the 
dinner were not ready? 20. I would blame the 
cook. 21. We would blame the cook. 22. I would 
have blamed the waitress, if the table had not been 
set. 23. Whom would you have blamed? 24. We 
would have blamed you. 25. Whom must I blame? 
26. You must not always blame me. 27. It is quite 
possible that they will blame you. 28. I am very 
sorry that you have blamed me. 29, Do not blame 
me. 30. Blame him. 31. You never fail to blame 
me. 32. You are more calm after having blamed 
someone. 


FIFTIETH LESSON 

S’y prendre—To go about it 

Principal parts: S’y prendre, s’y prenant, s’y etant 
pris, je m’y prends, je m’y pris. 

S’y prendre— to go about it, to do it, to manage. 
Ex.: Je vous dirai comment il s’y prend—I will 
tell you how he goes about it. 

Se prendre d’amitie pour— to take a liking to. Ex.: 
Je me suis pris d’amitie pour ce jeune homme—I 
took a liking to that young man. 

L 

1. How do you manage to teach French to Ameri¬ 
cans? 2. I shall explain to you how I go about it. 



French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


81 


3. He will tell you how he goes about it. 4. Did 
you go about it in the same way at the beginning of 
your career? 5. I did not go about it in the same 

way. 6. He did not go about it in the same way. 

7. How did you manage to correct that child? 8. 
I went about it in this manner. 9. He went about 
it quite differently. 10. They did not go about it 
as I did. 11. I have taken a liking to that boy. 
12. Did you not take a liking to him? 13. If I had 
not taken a liking to him, I would not have taken 
so much trouble. 14. He had taken a liking to you. 
15. Will you go about it as I do? 16. I shall go 
about it as you do. 17. If you do your duty, he will 
take a liking to you. 18. When he will have taken 

a liking to you, you will obtain all you may wish. 

19. How would you go about it to secure that posi¬ 
tion? 20. This is how I would go about it. 21. I 
would not go about it thus. 22. He would not go 
about it thus. 23. He would not have gone about it 
in this manner. 24. We would not have gone about 
it in this manner. 25. How then, would you have 
gone about it ? 26. How do you want me to manage 

it? 27. You must go about it as I told you. 28. It 
is not possible that he has gone about it as I told 
him. 29. Are you not glad that I went about it 
like that? 30. Do not go about it in that manner. 
31. Go about it this way. 32. You know how to go 
about it. 33. We know how to go about it. 34. 
They know how to go about it. 


82 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


FIFTY-FIRST LESSON 

Procurer—To procure, to get 

Principal parts: Procurer, procurant, procure, je 
procure, je procurai. 

Se procurer— to get (for one’s self). Ex.: Je me 
procurerai ce livre pour demain—I shall get that 
book for to-morrow. 


LI 

1. When my former music master comes to spend 
the winter here, I get pupils for him. 2. She gets 
pupils for me. 3. Where do you get all those 
novels? 4. I get them in New York. 5. Where did 
you procure all you required, when you lived so far 
from the city? 6. I procured almost all at the 
neighboring farm. 7. We always got pupils for 
him when he came, to New York. 8. Who has pro¬ 
cured this position for you? 9. I procured this 
position for him. 10. Where did you get all these 
flowers? 11. I got them at the village. 12. We 
got them without trouble. 13. Did he get them 
here? 14. He got them not far from here. 15. I 
had procured work for this man, but he liked better 
to go away. 16. Who had procured work for you? 
17. I had procured all these flowers for you. 18. 
Where shall you get all the nicknacks which you 
require for your mantle pieces? 19. I shall get 
them in New York. 20. When I shall have pro¬ 
cured all that, I shall return home. 21. When she 
will have procured all that, she will return home. 
22. Would you get all you require, if you went to 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


83 


New York? 23. I would get it. 24. She would get 
it. 25. I would have procured it, if I had gone to 
New York. 26. You would have procured it. 27. 
He would have procured it. 28. Where do you wish 
me to procure these tools? 29. I would much like 
to have you get him a few pupils. 30. I thank you 
for having got him some. 31. Are you glad that I 
g r ot him some? 32. Do you think that he got all he 
needs. 33. Get all you need. 


FIFTY-SECOND LESSON 

Promettre—To promise 

Principal parts: Promettre, promettant, promis, je 
promets, je promis. 

LII 

1. Do you promise to write to me? 2. I promise 
you to do so. 3. She promises you to do so. 4. 
They promise you to do so. 5. We promise you to 
do so. 6. Do you not promise me to do so? 7. 
Does he not promise her to do so? 8. When I was 
little, I always promised my parents to do better. 
9. He always promised to do better. 10. You 
always promised to do better. 11. Did you not 
promise me to be there at five o’clock? 12. I did 
not promise you to do so. 13. He did not promise 
you to do so. 14. You promised me to do so. 15. 
Did you not promise her to do so? 16. We did not 
promise him to do so. 17. If you had promised me 
to read a little every day, I would have brought you 



84 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


some books. 18. Had I not promised you to do so? 
19. Had she not promised you to do so? 20. Will 
you not promise her to work? 21. I shall promise 
her to do so. 22. When you will have promised her 
to do so, she will send you a beautiful present. 
23. When she will have promised to do so, I shall 
send her a beautiful present. 24. I would promise 
to accompany her everywhere, if she came. 25. 
Would you promise her to do so? 26. Would you 
not promise him to do so? 27. We would promise 
him to do so. 28. Would you not have promised 
him to do so? 29. I would have promised him to 
do so. 30. She would not have promised you to do 
so. 31. I want you to promise me to come. 32. 
She wants me to promise her to come. 33. She is 
afraid that we shall not promise her to come. 34. 
I am sorry that you have promised to spend all the 
summer with her. 35. He is sorry that we have 
promised to spend the summer at her home. 36. 
Promise it to him. 37. Do not promise him that. 
38. One must never make a promise that one does 
not intend to keep. 39. After having promised him, 
you cannot dispense with doing it. 


FIFTY-THIRD LESSON 

S’en rapporter a—To leave it to 

Principal parts: S’en rapporter, s’en rapportant, s’en 
etant rapporte, je m’en rapporte, je m’en rap- 
portai. 

Ex.: Elle s’en rapporte a sa couturiere—She 
leaves it to her dressmaker. 



French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


85 


S en rapporter a —to abide by. Ex.: Je m’en rap- 
porte a ee que vous m’avez dit— I abide by what 
you have told me. 

LIII 

1. Put any trimmings you please on that hat, I 
leave it to you. 2. She leaves it to you. 3. Do you 
leave it to me? 4. Do you not leave it to me? 5. 
I abide by what he says. 6. When I was in Paris, 
I left the details of my toilet to my dressmaker. 
7. She left it to her dressmaker. 8. Did you always 
leave it to her? 9. I have left it all to her. 10. 
Did you leave it to her? 11. Did you not leave it 
to her? 12. He did not leave it to me. 13. We did 
not leave it to him. 14. He did abide by what I 
said. 15. If I had left it to you, I would not have 
made that blunder. 16. I made that dress accord¬ 
ing to my taste, since you know very well that you 
had left it to me. 17. I hope that you will leave it 
to me. 18. She will leave it to me. 19. Will you 
not leave it to me ? 20. All will go better when you 

will have left it to him. 21. Would you leave it 
to my judgment? 22. Would you not leave it to 
my judgment? 23. He would leave it to you. 24. 
We would not leave it to him. 25. They would not 
leave it to him. 26. To whom then would they 
leave it? 27. To whom would they have left it? 
28. To whom would you have left it? 29. I would 
not have left it to him? 30. We would have left it 
to you. 31. To whom do you wish me to leave it? 
32. Do you want us to leave it to our lawyer? 33. 
Consult someone else; your father does not wish you 
to leave it to your lawyer. 34. It is unfortunate 


86 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


that you have left it to him. 35. You may leave it 
to him. 36. We cannot leave it to him. 37. I do 
not wish to leave it to him. 38. Leave it to me. 
39. Do not leave it to him. 40. Let us abide by 
what he has said. 


FIFTY-FOURTH LESSON 

Reconnaitre—To recognize 

Principal parts: Reconnaitre, reconnaissant, re- 
connu, je reconnais, je reconnus. 

Reconnaitre— to acknowledge. 

Je vous reconnais bien la— It is just like you. 

LIY 

1. Do you recognize me? 2. Do you not recog¬ 
nize me? 3. He does not recognize you. 4. We 
acknowledge that you have acted properly. 5. Peo¬ 
ple have told me that you have loaned him money; 
it is just like you. 6. It is just like him. 7. He 
recognized no one in his illness. 8. Did you recog¬ 
nize no one? 9. I did not recognize you at first. 
10. Did you not recognize me? 11. Did you not 
recognize her? 12. Did you not recognize us? 13. 
You have no doubt acknowledged that I was within 
my rights. 14. Would you have spoken to him, if 
you had recognized him? 15. I would have spoken 
to him, if I had recognized him. 16. If he had 
acknowledged that he was in the wrong, I would 
have forgiven him. 17. He will never acknowledge 
that he has made a mistake? 18. They will never 



French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


87 


acknowledge that they have made a mistake. 19, 
When he will have acknowledged that he was 
wrong, I shall receive him. 20. Would you recog¬ 
nize him, if he came back after his long absence t 
21 Would you not recognize him? 22. I would 
recognize him by his walk? 23. We would perhaps 
not recognize him. 24. They would not recognize 
him. 25. Would you have recognized me, if I had 
dressed as a soldier ? 26. Would you not have recog¬ 
nized me? 27. Would she have recognized me? 
28. Would she not have recognized me? 29. I do 
not think he will recognize you. 30. I doubt very 
much that you will recognize her. 31. I doubt if 
(that) they will acknowledge that they were wrong. 
32. I doubt they have acknowledged they were 
wrong. 33. Does it surprise you that I should have 
recognized her? 34. How does it happen that you 
did not recognize her? 35. Acknowledge once and 
for all that you have made a blunder. 36. He went 
away without having acknowledged that he had 
made a mistake. 


FIFTY-FIFTH LESSON 

Remettre—To put again, to put back 

Principal parts: Remettre, remettant, remis, je re- 
mets, je remis. 

Remettre— to deliver, to hand. 

Remettre— to put off. 

Se remettre— to recover. 

Se remettre au beau— to be fine weather again. 



88 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


LV 

1. I never put off until to-morrow what I can do 
to-day. 2. Do you not sometimes put off until the 
morrow what you could do at once ? 3. Every morn¬ 
ing she hands me a letter from her parents. 4. His 
mother has been very ill, but she is recovering 
slowly. 5. I am recovering slowly. 6. When I took 
a book, I always put it back in its place. 7. Did 
you always put it back in its place? 8. Did you 
put back the chair in its place? 9. I have put it 
back in its place. 10. She handed me a letter from 
her sister. 11. Did she hand it to you? 12. Did 
she not hand it to you? 13. We have handed it to 
you. 14. We have handed it to him. 15. We did 
not hand it to her. 16. My mother has been very 
ill, but she has fully recovered. 17. Did she fully 
recover? 18. Did she not fully recover? 19. They 
have fully recovered. 20. She had fully recovered, 
when she left for the country. 21. If you had put 
back that book in its place, it would be there. 22. 
You will put off this pleasure party until some other 
day, since it is raining. 23. We shall put it off until 
another day. 24. When she will have fully recov¬ 
ered, she will go to see you. 25. We would put off 
the wedding until the end of the month, if you could 
not be there. 26. Would you put it off until later 
on my account? 27. Would you have put it off 
until later on my account? 28. Would you not have 
put it off? 29. We would certainly have put it off. 
30. Do you wish us to put it off? 31. To whom do 
you wish me to hand that letter? 32. Hand it to 
your father. 33. I am glad that you have delivered 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 89 

it this very morning. 34. Are you glad that I 
delivered it at once? 35. He has returned to busi¬ 
ness before having fully recovered. 36. Remain 
here until you are fully recovered. 37. Will you 
kindly deliver this letter to your sister? 38. You 
will please me by delivering it to her at once. 39. 
It is fine weather again. 


FIFTY-SIXTH LESSON 

Se repentir de—To repent 

Principal parts: Se repentir, se repentant, s’etant 
repenti, je me repens, je me repentis. 

S’en repentir— to repent it. 

LVI 

1. Do you repent having said that? 2. I repent 
it. 3. I do not repent it. 4. He does not repent it. 
5. Does he not repent it? 6. Do they not repent it? 
7. If I repented having been at that celebration, it 
would not be for the reasons you imagine. 8. If 
you repented it, you would perhaps not tell it. 9. 
Did you never repent having come here? 10. I 
have never repented it. 11. She has repented it 
many times. 12. We have repented it. 13. Did 
they repent it? 14. If you had repented having 
written that letter, you would not have continued 
the correspondence. 15. Evidently I had not re¬ 
pented it. 16. He had not repented it. 17. We had 
not repented it. 18. I believe however that you 
will repent it. 19. I hope that she will not repent 



90 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


it. 20. When she will have repented it, she will 
make us- understand it. 21. If you bought that 
house, you would never repent it. 22. He would 
never repent it. 23. We would repent it sooner 
than you think. 24. They would never repent it. 
25. Would you not have repented more than once 
having bought it? 26. You are right, I would 
probably have repented it. 27. Accept his offer, 
before he repents having made it to you. 28. I 
doubt that you will ever repent it. 29. He does not 
believe that I shall repent what I said. 30. How 
does it happen that you have not repented having 
attacked him in the papers? 31. You are surprised 
that I have not repented it. 32. Never repent a 
good action. 33. You will never have occasion to 
repent it. 34. I certainly hope that we shall never 
have occasion to repent it. 


FIFTY-SEVENTH LESSON 
Revenir—To come back 

Principal parts: Revenir, revenant, revenu, je re- 
viens, je revins. 

Cel a revient au meme—That amounts to the same. 
Ne pas revenir de—to be very much surprised at. 
N’en pas revenir—not to get over it. Ex.: II n’en 
revient pas—He does not get over it. Je ne peux 
pas en revenir—I cannot get over it. 

LVII 

1. I come back here every year. 2. She does not 



French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 91 

come back every year. 3. Do yon not come back 
every year? 4. Is it really true that she has done 
that? I cannot get over it. 5. We cannot get over 
it 6. Whether you write him to-day or to-morrow, 
that amounts to the same thing. 7. It was in vain 
that they drove the dog away, he always came back. 
8. That news was so extraordinary for him that he 
was unable to get over it. 9 I have not yet got 
over it. 10. They have not yet got over it. 11. 
When did you come back from the country? 12. I 
came back the other day. 13. You would have en¬ 
joyed yourself very much, if you had come back. 
14. We would have enjoyed ourselves very much, if 
we had come back. 15. Would they not have en¬ 
joyed themselves, if they had come back? 16. He 
will never come back. 17 Why will he not come 
back? 18. We shall never come back. 19. Why 
will you not come back? 20. Write or do not write, 
that will amount to the same thing. 21. As soon as 
I have come back, I shall rent a house. 22. Would 
you not come back, if you were sure to find me here 
again? 23. I would undoubtedly come back. 24. 
She would come back. 25. We would all come back. 
26. Why would they not come back? 27. I would 
have come back with great pleasure, if you had 
invited me. 28. She would have come back with 
great pleasure, if you had invited her. 29. Would 
she not have come back? 30. Would they not have 
come back? 31. Are you afraid that they will 
not come back? 32. I am afraid that you will not 
come back. 33. She is afraid that I shall not come 
back. 34. How does it happen that he has not come 


92 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


back? 35. How does it happen that you did not 
come back? 36. Come back when you please. 37. 
You are very nice to come back when you are told 
to do so. 38. You are not nice not to have come 
back. 


FIFTY-EIGHTH LESSON 

Rire—To laugh 

Principal parts: Hire, riant, ri, je ris, je ris. 

Rire aux larmes—to laugh till tears come. 

Rire au nez de quelqu’un—to laugh in someone’s 
face. Ex.: II a ri au nez de son ami—He laughed 
in his friend’s face. II m’a ri au nez—He laughed 
in my face. 

Rire aux eclats—to roar with laughter. 

Rire a gorge deployee—to laugh heartily. 

Rire sous cape—to laugh in one’s sleeve. 

Rire du bout des levres—to give a faint laugh. 

Rire jaune—to give a forced laugh. 

Se rire de quelqu’un—to make game of some one. 
Ex.: II s’est ri de moi—He made game of me. 

LVIII 

1. What are you laughing at? 2. We are laugh¬ 
ing at what he has just said. 3. We are not 
laughing at you. 4. I never laugh at any one. 
5. He does not like that story very much, he laughs 
faintly. 6. When you told, that anecdote about him, 
he gave a forced laugh. 7. Everybody was roaring 
with laughter. 8. I was laughing in my sleeve. 9. 



French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


93 


We were all roaring with laughter. 10. They 
laughed very much when you pronounced that word. 
11. I laughed till the tears came. 12. We laughed 
till the tears came. 13. He laughed heartily. 14. 
He laughed in his face. 15. He laughed in my face. 
16. Did you not laugh in his face? 17. I had 
laughed so much that I had to leave the parlor. 
18. If you had laughed in his face, he would have 
got angry. 19. Would you not have got angry, if 
he had laughed in your face? 20. I shall laugh no 
more. 21. We shall laugh no more. 22. As soon 
as you will have made game of him, you will repent 
it. 23. We have never made game of him. 24. 
You would laugh, if I should tell you what has hap¬ 
pened. 25. Would you not laugh? 26. Would she 
not laugh? 27. I am sure that I would laugh. 28. 
You would have laughed, if you had seen him in 
that rig. 29. Would you not have laughed? 30. 
We would have roared with laugher and he would 
have given a forced laugh. 31. Children, I do not 
want you to laugh at the table. 32. Why do you 
not want us to laugh? 33. It is unfortunate that 
you laughed in his face. 34. Do not laugh all the 
time. 35. I cannot help laughing. 36. Let us not 
laugh all the time. 37. You know the proverb: 
Laugh to-day and cry to-morrow. 38. He who 
laughs last laughs best. 

FIFTY-NINTH LESSON 

Savoir—To know 

Principal parts: Savoir, sachant, su, je sais, je sus. 
Savoir a fond— to know thoroughly. 



94 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


Savoir gre de— to be thankful for. Ex.: Je vous 
sais gre de ce que vous avez fait pour moi—I am 
thankful to you for what you have done for me. 
Savoir mauvais gre de— to take ill, to be unthankful 
for. 

Savoir vivre— to be well mannered. Ex.: Ils savent 
vivre—They are well mannered. 

Je ne saurais—I could not (only in the conditional 
mood). Ex.: Je ne saurais repondre a cette ques¬ 
tion—I could not answer that question. 

Ne savoir ou donner de la tete— not to know which 
way to turn. 

Ne savoir a quel saint se vouer— not to know which 
way to turn. 

LIX 

1. Do you know your lesson? 2. Do you not 
know your lesson? 3. We know it. 4. They do not 
know it. 5. He knows the history of his country 
thoroughly. 6. I am thankful for the service you 
have done me. 7. They are thankful for the service 
you have done them. 8. He is unthankful for the 
advice which I gave him. 9. I like your friend very 
much; he is a well mannered man. 10. Your father 
knew the French language thoroughly. 11. Did 
he not know it thoroughly? 12. If I knew it 
thoroughly, I would only read French authors. 13. 
I did not know how to answer that question. 14. 
He did not know how to answer that question. 
15. He was thankful to me for the service I did 
him. 16. He was not thankful at all for it. 17. 
They were not thankful for it at all. 18. If I had 
known what was going on, I would not have come. 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


95 


19. Would you have come, if you had known what 
was going on? 20. If he had known what was 
going on, he would not have come. 21. You will 
soon know what they have decided. 22. She will 
be thankful to you for what you have - done for her. 
23. We shall always be thankful to you for it. 24. 
They will not at all be thankful for what you have 
done. 25. I would know my verbs, if I studied 
them a little more seriously. 26. Would you know 
them? 27. Would you not know them? 28. He 
would know them. 29. If you loaned him a few 
books, he would be thankful to you for it. 30. We 
would be thankful to you for it. 31. I could not 
tell you how happy I am to see you. 32. He could 
not express all his gratitude. 33. If you had ob¬ 
tained that position for me, I would always have 
been thankful to you for it. 34. He would have 
been thankful to you for it. 35. We would have 
been thankful to you for it. 36. I would not have 
known how to reply to that question. 37. Would 
you not have known how to reply? 38. He would 
not speak although he knows French very well. 
39. Do you think that we know enough French to 
travel in France? 40. I am surprised you did not 
know how to reply. 41. I am surprised he did not 
know how to reply. 42. I would not come to a 
decision before knowing exactly what has happened. 
43. The affairs were so complicated that he did not 
know which way to turn. 


96 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


SIXTIETH LESSON 

Servir—To serve, to help to, to wait on 

Principal parts: Servir, servant, servi, je sers, je 
servis. 

Servir— to be of use to, to be of service. 

Servir de— to serve as, to do instead of. Ex.: II 
vous servira d’interprete—He will serve you as 
an interpreter. 

Servir de pere a— to be a father to. Ex.: Mon 
oncle me sert de pere—My uncle is a father to me. 
A quoi sert de...? Que sert de. . .?—What is the 
use of...? Ex.: A quoi sert de se plaindre?— 
What is the use of complaining? 

Ne servir de rien or a rien— to be of no use. Ex.: 
Ne vous plaignez pas; cela ne servirait de rien— 
Do not complain; that would be of no use. 

LX 

1. Will you drink coffee, if I help you to some? 

2. He will drink (some), if you help him to some. 

3. Who is waiting on the table? 4. He is a father 
to that child. 5. You are a mother to her, madam. 
6. What is the use of working so hard? 7. Do not 
scold him all the time; it is of no use. 8. I do not 
scold him any more; I have noticed that it was of 
no use. 9. That waiter waited very well on the 
table; I am sorry he has gone. 10. Did he not wait 
very well? 11. You waited very well. 12. He 
waited very well on that occasion. 13. I have helped 
you to wine. 14. Why did you help me to wine? 
15. They were father and mother to me. 16. Were 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 97 

they father and mother to you ? 17. I have done all 

I could to correct that child ; of what use has it 
been? 18. That has been of no use. 19. If that 
had been of any use, I would have continued. 20. 
You loved that man very much because he had been 
a father to you. 21. Had he not been a father to 
you? 22. Learn French, it will help you to get 
along in the world. 23. Who will wait on the table ? 
24. The servants will wait on us presently. 25. 
When they shall have served the soup, they will 
bring white wine. 26. All your good advice will 
have been of no use to him. 27. I would help you 
to wine, if you wanted some. 28. He would help 
you to wine, if you wanted some. 29. We would 
help you (to some), if you wanted some. 30. We 
would have helped you (to some), if you had wanted 
some. 31. Would you have helped me (to some), 
if I had wanted some? 32. Would you not have 
helped him (to some), if he had wanted some? 33. 
Do you want me to help you to some? 34. Do you 
not wish him to help you to some? 35. He does 
not wish you to help him to any. 36. He is very 
glad that I have helped him to some. 37. He is 
very glad that you have helped him to some. 38. 
Is he not glad that we have helped him to some? 
39. Help me to very little. 40. Do not help him to 
any. 41. I am thankful to him for having been a 
father to me. 42. In being a father to you, I have 
only done my duty. 


98 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


SIXTY-FIRST LESSON 

Se servir de—To use, to make use of 

Principal parts: Se servir, se servant, s’etant servi, 
je me sers, je me servis. 

S’en servir— to use it. Ex.: Yous pouvez vous en 
servir—You may use it. 

Se servir— to help oneself. Ex.: S’il n’y a pas de 
domestiques, nous nous servirons—If there are no 
servants, we will help ourselves. 

LXI 

1. Do you use that book? 2. I do not use it. 3. 
He uses it. 4. We use it. 5. Do you not use it? 
6. They use it. 7. I was unable to lend him that 
pencil because I was using it. 8. Were you using 
it? 9. Were you not using it? 10. We were using 
these tools. 11. I have used that glass. 12. Did 
you use that glass? 13. Did you not use it? 14. 
I did not use it. 15. She has used it. 16. They 
have used these tools. 17. If I had used that knife, 
I would have carved that turkey better. 18. If you 
had used that knife, you would have carved that 
turkey better. 19. I would have used it, if I had 
seen it on the table. 20. Will you use that plate? 
21. I shall not use it. 22. She will not use it. 23. 
When you will have used that knife, you will pass 
it to me. 24. When I shall have used that knife, I 
shall pass it to you. 25. Would you help yourself, 
if the servant were not there? 26. It goes without 
saying that we would help ourselves. 27. I would 
use that pen, if you loaned it to me. 28. Would 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


99 


you have used it, if I had loaned it to you? 29. 
Would you not have used it? 30. Would she not 
have used it? 31. Do you want me to use that 
brush to fix your hair? 32. I like better that you 
use the other. 33. Children must use their fingers. 
34. It is good that you made use of that expression; 
it is more proper. 35. I am very glad that he made 
use of it. 36. He is glad that we made use of it. 

37. There are brushes and penknives; use them. 

38. If the waiter is not there, help yourself. 39. 
There are pencils; you can use them. 40. ^.fter 
having used them, you can put them back on my 
desk. 41. We shall put them back on your desk 
after having used them. 


SIXTY-SECOND LESSON 
Sortir—-To go out 

Principal parts: Sortir, sortant, sorti, je sors, je 
sortis. 

Sortir— to come out, to come. 

Sortir— to take out (conjugated with “avoir”). 

LXII 

1. Do you go out in the evening? 2. I very sel¬ 
dom go out. 3. We go out but seldom. 4. Why do 
you not go out? 5. Where do you come from? I 
did not see you coming. 6. I come out of the bank. 
7. The coachmen take out the horses every day. 8. 
In the country, we went out every morning. 9. Did 
you go out every morning? 10. I went out when it 



100 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


was not too warm. 11. Why did you not go out 
to-day, madam? 12. I did not go out because I had 
something to do. 13. They did not go out. 14. 
Did they not go out ? 15. From where did you take 

that money? 16. I took it out of my pocket 17. 
From where did all those workmen come ? 18. They 

came out of the factory. 19. If you had gone out 
to-day, you would have seen the procession which 
went up Fifth Avenue. 20. She would have seen it, 
if she had gone out. 21. Would we not have seen 
it, if we had gone out? 22. I shall not go out to¬ 
morrow. 23. Will she not go out? 24. Coachman, 
you will not take out the horses; the weather is too 
bad. 25. When the parents shall have gone out, 
the children will make more noise. 26. When we 
shall have gone out, the servants will make up the 
rooms. 27. Would you go out with pleasure, if you 
were a little stronger? 28. I would go out with 
pleasure. 29. Would you not go out with pleasure? 

30. Would you have gone out, if you had company? 

31. I certainly would not have gone out. 32. My 
sisters would not have gone out, either. 33. Must 
I go out every day? 34. Must you not go out every 
day? 35. We had better go out a little. 36. I am 
surprised that you went out in this bad weather. 
37. I am much afraid they have gone out. 38. Let 
us go out a little. 39. Do not go out alone. 40. 
He has regained strength by going out a little every 
day. 41. One always feels better after having gone 
out. 42. When the cat is away, the mice will play. 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


101 


SIXTY-THIRD LESSON 

Souffrir—To suffer, to have a pain 

Principal parts : Souffrir, souffrant, souffert, je 
souffre, je souffris. 

Souffrir— to bear, to stand. 

Souffrir— to allow. 

LXIII 

1. I suffer much with my head. 2. She suffers 
with her head. 3. Do you not suffer with your 
head? 4. They suffer all with patience. 5. Did 
you suffer much in your illness? 6. I suffered 
horribly. 7. You did not suffer as much as I. 8. 
She suffered much during her husband’s lifetime. 
9. Why did she stand all that? 10. Why did we 
stand all that? 11. If I had allowed people to ill- 
treat my children, I would have shown that I had 
no heart. 12. If you had allowed that, you would 
have lost my esteem. 13. I shall not allow that 
they insult you. 14. You will not allow servants 
to disobey you. 15. Will you allow it? 16. We 
shall not allow it. 17. That poor mother will have 
suffered much in her lifetime. 18. We shall have 
suffered much. 19. I would never allow people to 
speak in that manner to me. 20. She would never 
allow people to speak in that manner to her. 21. 
Would you allow it? 22. Would they allow it? 
23. Who would stand it? 24. Tell me if you would 
have stood it. 25. Would you have stood it? 26. 
We would not have stood it. 27. Why do you want 
me to stand it ? 28. How do you expect me to stand 


102 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


such an outrage? 29. You must not allow that. 
30. Do not fear that we shall allow it. 31. I doubt 
if (that) you have suffered as much as I. 32. I 
doubt he has suffered as much as I. 33. Allow me 
to speak to you once more of that matter. 34. Do 
not allow people to make you waste your time. 
35. He died after having suffered for years. 


SIXTY-FOURTH LESSON 

Se souvenir de—To remember 

Principal parts: Se souvenir, se souvenant, s’etant 
souvenu, je me souviens, je me souvins. 

S’en souvenir —to remember it. 

LXIY 

1. Do you remember what he said to you? 2. I 
remember it. 3. He does not remember it. 4. They 
do not remember it. 5. We remember it. 6. For¬ 
merly, I remembered without trouble the names of 
the persons people introduced to me. 7. My sister 
remembered them very well. 8. Did you not re¬ 
member them? 9. They had made me a lot of 
recommendations which I remembered perfectly. 10. 
She remembered perfectly all that had been said to 
her. 11. Did you remember it? 12. Did you not 
remember it? 13. They did not remember it. 14. 
If you had remembered it, you would not have had 
all that trouble. 15. If I had remembered it, I would 
not have had all that trouble. 16. Would you not 
have had less trouble, if you had remembered it? 



French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


103 


17. I shall remember what you did for me all my 
life. 18. She will remember what I have done for 
her. 19. Will she not remember it? 20. You would 
not remember so well all that you read, if your 
memory were not trained. 21. She would never 
remember all those dates, if she did not study with 
so much ardor. 22. Would you have remembered 
all those dates, if you had not studied with so much 
ardor? 23. I would never have remembered theni. 
24. She would not have remembered them. 25. 
Must I not remember all those names? 26. You 
must remember them. 27. It is rare that one re¬ 
members everything. 28. Are you not pleased that 
we remember your advice so well? 29. I am glad, 
madam, that you have remembered them. 30. It is 
fortunate that we have remembered them. 31. 
Remember that we expect you at six o’clock. 32. 
I shall never be able to remember all that. 33. We 
shall never be able to remember all that. 34. Will 
you be able to remember all that? 


SIXTY-FIFTH LESSON 
Suivre—To follow 

Principal parts: Suivre, suivant, suivi, je suis, je 
suivis. 

LXV 

1. Do you still follow this course in literature? 
2. I follow it regularly. 3. We are following it. 
4. My friends follow it also. 5. In Paris, we fol¬ 
lowed several courses at the Sorbonne. 6. I followed 



104 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


several courses. 7. Did you not follow the same 
course as your brother? 8. Did you follow me here? 
9. I have followed you. 10. I did not follow you. 
11. He has followed us. 12. The dog followed us 
everywhere we went. 13. Did he follow you every¬ 
where? 14. Did he not follow you everywhere? 
15. If I had followed your advice, I would not have 
lost so much money. 16. If we had followed your 
advice, we would not have lost so much money. 
17. Another time, I shall follow them, I warrant 
you. 18. She will follow them. 19. We shall fol¬ 
low them. 20. Will you not follow them? 21. 
When you will have followed all those courses you 
will be ready to pass the examinations. 22. When 
she will have followed all these courses, she will 
know her history thoroughly. 23. Would you fob 
low me, if I went shopping? 24. I would follow 
you with great pleasure. 25. She would follow us 
with pleasure. 26. Would you not follow us? 27. 
Would you not have followed us, if we had gone to 
take a walk? 28. We would have followed you. 
29. They would not have followed us. 30. What 
course do you wish me to follow? 31. I do not like 
you to follow that course. 32. It is sufficient that 
we follow the course in history. 33. I doubt they 
have followed your argument. 34. I doubt you 
have followed my argument. 35. Follow the ex¬ 
ample of your parents. 36. Let us not follow the 
bad examples of these young men. 37. It is impos¬ 
sible to follow you. 38. After having followed the 
course in history, I shall follow the course in mod¬ 
ern literature. 39. He who loves me, follows me. 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


105 


SIXTY-SIXTH LESSON 

Se taire—To say nothing, to keep silent 

Principal parts: Se taire, se taisant, s’etant tu, je 
me tais, je me tus. 

LXYI 

1. A well-bred child keeps silent when grown 
people speak. 2. He does not always keep silent 
when he is told to say nothing. 3. If yon do not 
keep silent, I shall punish yon. 4. They will punish 
us if we do not keep silent. 5. Well, I am silent. 
6. If I said nothing you would not be pleased. 7. 
If he did not keep silent, I would punish him. 8. 
They would punish us, if we did not keep silent. 
9. When she saw that I was getting angry, she kept 
silent. 10. It is not for that that I kept silent. 
11. It is not for that that we kept silent. 12. Is it 
not for that that you kept silent? 13. It is not for 
that that they kept silent. 14. If you had said 
nothing, that would not have happened. 15. If we 
had said nothing, that would not have happened. 
16. Would that have happened, if I had said noth¬ 
ing? 17. You will say nothing another time, I am 
sure. 18. We shall say nothing, since you wish it. 
19. Would you say nothing if it were a question of 
an important matter? 20. Would you not keep 
silent? 21. I would assuredly keep silent. 22. 
Would he not have kept silent, if it had been a ques¬ 
tion of an important matter? 23. I think she would 
have kept silent. 24. We would have kept silent. 
25. Would you not have kept silent? 26. She is 
going away so that you may keep silent. 27. Do 


106 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


you want me to say nothing ? 28. Do you not want 

them to keep silent? 29. Are you not glad they 
have said nothing? 30. He is glad I have said 
nothing. 31. He is glad we have said nothing. 
32. If you wish to please me, say nothing. 33. Let 
us keep silent to please him. 34. One must know 
how to keep silent. 35. I do not wish to keep silent. 
36. We do not want to keep silent. 37. Do you not 
wish to keep silent? 38. I congratulate you for 
having kept silent on that occasion. 39. Keep silent 
and do well. There is a motto I recommend to you. 


SIXTY-SEVENTH LESSON 

Tarder a—To delay, to be long in 

Principal parts: Tarder, tardant, tarde, je tarde, je 
tardai. 

Ex.: Je ne tarderai pas a vous ecrire—I shall soon 
write to you. (I shall not delay writing you.) 
Tarder de (impersonal)—to long. II me tarde, II te 
tarde, II lui tarde, II nous tarde, II vous tarde, 
II leur tarde—I long, I am longing, etc. Ex.: II 
me tarde de vous voir—I long to see you. 


LXVII 

1. I long to receive news of my son. 2. He longs 
to receive news of his son. 3. Do you long to see 
him? 4. We long to see you. 5. We longed to hear 
from you. 6. They longed to hear from you. 7. 
Did you not long to see her? 8. I longed to see 
her. 9. You were very long in writing to me. 10. 



French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


107 


I admit that I was too long in replying to yonr let¬ 
ter. 11. We delayed too long in replying to that 
letter. 12. They were very long in replying. 13. 
You would have scolded me, if I had delayed in 
answering you. 14. You would have scolded us, if 
we had delayed in answering you. 15. If they had 
not delayed so long in writing, they would have 
pleased me. 16. I shall not be long. (I shall not 
delay coming back.) 17. He will not be long. (He 
will not delay coming back.) 18. They will not be 
long. (They will not delay coming back.) 19. We 
will not delay in writing to you. 20. If you remain 
so long abroad, we will long to see you. 21. They 
will long to see you. 22. If business were not good, 
we would not delay in advising you of it. 23. I 
would not delay in advising you of it. 24. If I 
remained long abroad, I would long to know what 
was going on here. 25. We would have longed to 
see you again very much, if we had not come back. 
26. If business had not been good, we would not 
have delayed in advising you. 27. They would not 
have delayed in advising you. 28. I would not have 
delayed in advising you. 29. It is proper that you 
do not delay too long in inviting him. 30. Do you 
not think that they long to go? 31. I am annoyed 
that you delayed so long in writing me. 32. He is 
annoyed that I delayed so long in writing him. 33. 
He regrets that we delayed so long in writing him. 
34. Do not delay in letting me hear from you. 35. 
If your son has been absent for so long a time, you 
must long to see him again. 


108 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


SIXTY-EIGHTH LESSON 
Tenir—To hold 

Principal parts: Tenir, tenant, tenu, je tiens, je tins. 
Tenir compagnie— to keep company. 

Tenir a —to care, to be anxious, to like, to be at¬ 
tached to. Ex.: Je ne tiens pas a le voir—I do 
not care to see him. 

Y tenir— to care about it, to like it, to be attached 
to it. 

Tenir de— to take after. Ex.: II tient de son pere— 
He takes after his father. 

Faire tenir— to send, to forward. Ex.: Je vous le 
ferai tenir—I will send it to you. 

Je n’y tiens plus— I cannot bear it any longer. 

II ne tient qu’a vous de— It only depends on you to. 
Ex.: II ne tient qu’a vous d’etre la a l’heure—It 
only depends on you to be there on time. 

Tenir tete a— to resist, to stand out against. 

Qu’a cela ne tienne— Never mind that. Let not 
that be an obstacle. 

S’il ne tient qu’a cela— If that is all. 

Un “Tiens” vaut mieux que deux “Tu l’auras”— 
A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush. 

LXVIII 

1. Are you anxious to go out this afternoon? 2. 
I am not anxious to go out. 3. Do you not care to 
make his acquaintance? 4. We do not care to make 
his acquaintance. 5. We do not care about it. 6. 
I do not care about it. 7. That child takes after his 
father. 8. These children take after their father. 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


109 


9. Follow my advice;.it only depends on yon to be 
happy. 10. Does that prevent you from going? 
In no case; if that is all, I shall arrange matters dif¬ 
ferently. 11. I had to speak; I could not bear it any 
longer. 12. She finally broke forth; she could no 
longer bear it. 13. You were not holding the child 
by the hand, since he fell. 14. No, I was not holding 
it. 15. Who kept your mother company ? 16. I kept 
her company all morning. 17. You have forwarded 
all my letters without delay; I thank you. 18. He 
forwarded all our letters. 19. He did not wish us 
to have our own way, but I resisted him. 20. We 
resisted him 21. You could certainly have gone 
out, if you had cared about it. 22. I would have 
gone there, if I had been anxious to see him. 23. If 
we had cared to see him, we would not have gone 
out. 24. I shall hold the ladder, if you wish to 
climb the tree. 25. Will you not hold the ladder, if 
I wish to climb the tree? 26. When you will have 
held council with your friends, you will tell me what 
you intend to do. 27. When we shall have held 
council with our friends, we shall tell you what we 
intend to do. 28. Would you care to be introduced 
to that lady? 29. Would you not care to be intro¬ 
duced to that lady? 30. I would have kept you 
company, if you had remained home. 31. Would 
you have kept me company, if I had not gone out? 

32. Do you think that child takes after his mother ? 

33. Do you think that these children take after 
their mother? 34. If you are engaged at that hour, 
let not that be an obstacle; come later. 35. I am 
very glad that you kept him company. 36. Are you 


110 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


not glad that I kept him company? 37. All chil¬ 
dren seem to know this proverb well: “A bird ir\ 
the hand is worth two in the bush. ” 38. Keep the 

ladies company while we go to get a carriage. 39. 
After having kept these ladies company, you will 
be able to go out. 


SIXTY-NINTH LESSON 

Se tenir—To stand, to keep oneself 

Principal parts: Se tenir, se tenant, s’etant tenu, je 
me tiens, je me tins. 

Se tenir debout— to stand up, to remain standing. 

Se le tenir pour dit— to mind what one was told. 
Ex.: Je me le tiens pour dit—I mind what I was 
told. 

S’en tenir a— to abide by, to confine oneself to. 
Ex.: Je m’en tiens aux ordres que j’ai recus—I 
abide by the orders I have received. 

S’en tenir la —to be content with that, to go no 
farther. Ex.: Je fais ce qu’on m’a dit de faire, 
et je m’en tiens la—I am doing what I was told 
to do, and I go no farther. 

Savoir a quoi s’en tenir sur— to know what to think 
of, to know the truth about. Ex.: Je sais a quoi 
m’en tenir sur cette affaire—I know what to think 
of that affair. 

LXIX 

1. Where do you keep yourself when it is cold? 

2. I keep myself warm in my study. 3. Our pro¬ 
fessor always stands when he gives his lessons. 4. 



French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


111 


Do you stand when you recite your lessons? 5. I 
have not changed my mind; I abide by what I have 
said. 6. He abides by what I have said. 7. Did 
you stand while giving your lectures? 8. I stood. 
9. If he did not stand, they would not listen to him 
so attentively. 10. I stood during the whole per¬ 
formance. 11. Did you stand all the time? 12. 
That child was afraid; he stood near his father. 13. 
Did he not stand near his father? 14. Do you know 
why they remained standing? 15. If I had stood 
near the door, I would have seen you enter. 16. You 
would have seen me enter, if you had stood near the 
door. 17. You will stand near me, will you not? 
18. I shall stand near you. 19. If you forbid him to 
go out, he will mind what he is told. 20. We will 
mind what we are told. 21. We shall abide by what 
we have been told. 22. You will no longer be wet, 
when you will have stood before the fire for ten 
minutes. 23. We shall no longer be wet, when we 
shall have stood before the fire for ten minutes. 
24. Would you stand there if I told you? 25. 
I would stand there. 26. If I had already ob¬ 
tained those two diplomas, I would be content 
with that. 27. He would be content with that. 
28. He would have been content with that. 29. 
We would have been content with that. 30. Would 
you have remained standing all that time? 31. I 
would have remained standing. 32. Where do you 
wish me to stand? 33. Do you want us to stand 
under that tree until it stops raining? 34. Do you 
not wish them to stand under that tree? 35. It is 
fortunate that you stood by him. 36. It is fortu- 


112 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


nate that I stood by him. 37. Stand by my side. 
38. Do not always stand near him. 39. I know 
what to think of that man. 40. Do you not know 
what to think? 41. We know what to think. 


SEVENTIETH LESSON 
Tirer—To pull 

Principal parts: Tirer, tirant, tire, je tire, je tirai. 

Tirer—to fire (a gun). 

Tirer sur—to fire at. 

Tirer au sort, tirer a la courte paille—to draw lots, 
Tirer parti de—to make the best of, to turn to 

account. 

Se tirer de—to get out of. 

S’en tirer—to get out of it. 

Se tirer d’affaire—to get out of a difficulty, to get 
along. 

LXX 

1. If you pull too hard you will break the string. 
2. I am not pulling too hard. 3. That man is very 
clever; he turns everything to account. 4. Do you 
not turn what you learn to account? 5. We get 
along very nicely. 6. They get along very nicely. 
7. During my stay in France I got along perfectly 
well with the little French I know. 8. Did he not 
get along? 9. We got along. 10. I got out of that 
difficulty very nicely. 11. He got out of it very 
nicely. 12. Did you get out of it without too much 
trouble? 13. We got out of it very nicely. 14. I 



French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


113 


heard a report (gun shot); who fired? 15. My 
friend fired. 16. At what did you fire? 17. I fired 
at a rabbit. IS. To decide the question, we drew 
lots. 19. If you had drawn lots, there would have 
been no dispute. 20. We are in great trouble, 
but I hope we will get out of it. 21. You will get 
out of it perfectly. 22. When we shall have got 
out of it, w^e shall go more slowly. 23. When you 
will have got out of it, you will go more slowly. 24. 
If I had a gun, I would fire at that rabbit. 25. 
Would you fire, if you had a gun? 26. Would he 
get out of this scrape, if he were alone? 27. He 
would get out of it. 28. We would have got out 
of this scrape. 29. We would never have got out of 
it without you. 30. I would never have got out of 
it without your advice. 31. Give him some advice 
so that he may get out of difficulty alone. 32. I 
doubt that you will get out of difficulty without 
him. 33. I doubt he got out of difficulty alone. 
34. Do not fire at that bird. 35. Let us fire at that 
target. 36. You have got yourself in trouble; get 
out of it. 37. You can get out of it. 38. We can 
get out of it. 39. We shall begin after having 
drawn lots. 40. After having got out of difficulty, 
you will be more prudent. 


SEVENTY-FIRST LESSON 
Tromper—To deceive 

Principal parts: Tromper, trompant, trompe, je 
trompe, je trompai. 



114 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


Faire tromper— to mislead, to put out. 

Se tromper— to make a mistake, to be mistaken. 

Se tromper de ... —to mistake in the, to.. . the 
wrong. . . Ex.: Je me suis trompe d£ chemin—I 
took the wrong road. II s’est trompe de maison— 
He went to the wrong house. 


LXXI 

1. I think that you are mistaken. 2. Are you not 
mistaken? 3. They seldom make a mistake. 4. 
That man does not live here; you are mistaken in 
the house. 5. Do not speak to me when I am mak¬ 
ing up my accounts; you put me out. 6. She puts me 
out. 7. When I had less experience, I often made 
mistakes. 8. He very often made mistakes. 9. Did 
you often make mistakes? 10. I think that you 
have taken the wrong book. 11. Have we taken 
the wrong book? 12. Did you not take the wrong 
book? 13. I have taken the wrong book. 14. For¬ 
give me; I deceived you, but it was for fun. 15. 
You have deceived me. 16. If you had deceived 
me, I would not have forgiven you. 17. If he had 
made a mistake, he would have admitted his error. 
18. Would you not have admitted your error, if you 
had made a mistake? 19. I shall deceive you no 
more. 20. He will deceive you no more. 21. When 
you will have deceived me once, you will not again 
have the opportunity to deceive me. 22. I would 
more frequently make mistakes, if I were not care¬ 
ful. 23. Would you not make mistakes oftener, if 
you were not careful? 24. We would have made a 
mistake in the day, if we had not re-read your let- 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


115 


ter. 25. I would have made a mistake in the day, 
if I had not re-read your letter. 26. Would you 
have made a mistake in the day? 27. Would you 
not have made a mistake in the day? 28. They 
would have deceived you, if you had let them. 29. 
He would have deceived me, if I had let him. 30. 
Are you afraid he will deceive you? 31. Are you 
afraid he will make a mistake ? 32. I am not afraid 

you will make a mistake. 33. He is not afraid we 
will make a mistake. 34. I am sorry that you made 
a mistake in the day. 35. He is sorry that we have 
made a mistake in the day. 36. Do not make a 
mistake in the day. 37. It is not right to have 
deceived me. 38. I much regret having made a 
mistake. 39. We much regret having made a mis¬ 
take. 40. Are you not sorry to have made a mistake 
in the day? 


SEVENTY-SECOND LESSON 
Valoir—To be worth 

Principal parts: Valoir, valant, valu, je vaux, je 
valus. 

Valoir la peine— to be worth the while. Ex.: Cela 
ne vaut pas la peine d’en parler—That is not 
worth while mentioning. 

Faire valoir— to cultivate, to improve. Ex.: II fait 
valoir sa propriete—He is improving (cultivat¬ 
ing) his property. 

Se faire valoir —to praise oneself, to boast. Ex.: 
II aime a se faire valoir—He likes to boast. 



116 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


II vaut mieux or Mieux vaut (impersonal)—It is 
better. Ex.: II vaut mieux or Mieux vaut etre la 
a cinq heures—It is better to be there at five 
o’clock. 

II vaut autant or Autant vaut (impersonal)—It is 
just as well. Ex.: II vaut autant or Autant vaut 
le laisser venir—It is just as well to let him come. 

LXXII 

1. How much is that house worth ? 2. It is worth 

fifty thousand dollars. 3. That book is worthless. 
4. Those books are worthless. 5. Is it not better to 
remain here? 6. It is just as well to go elsewhere. 
7. Better late than never. 8. I have not made the 
repairs of which I spoke; it was not worth while. 
9. My father lived in the country; he improved his 
property. 10. You struck a good bargain when you 
bought that house; it was worth more than fifty 
thousand dollars. 11. It was better to pay at once. 
12. Was it not better to pay at once? 13. If that 
horse had been worth that price, I would have 
bought him. 14. If those horses had been worth 
that price, I would have bought them. 15. When 
that house shall be fully restored, it will be worth 
double. 16. Will it not be worth double? 17. Will 
these houses not be worth double, when they will 
have been fully restored? 18. My friend would im¬ 
prove his farm, dicl he not have his business in the 
city. 19. We would improve it ourselves, if we 
were not forced to remain in the city. 20. Would 
it not be better to write to that lady? 21. It would 
be better to write to her. 22. Would it not be just 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


117 


as well to call at her house? 23. Would it not have 
been just as well to invite her? 24. You are right; 
it would have been better to invite her. 25. Do you 
think it is worth the while to visit that museum? 
26. I do not think it is worth the while. 27. I am 
sorry he boasts so much every time he has the 
opportunity to speak in public. 28. I doubt that 
you will boast with so much assurance, if I am there. 
29. I regret that that wine was worthless. 30. I 
regret this fruit was worthless. 31. It is in bad 
taste to always try to boast. 32. After having im¬ 
proved his property, he retired to the country. 


SEVENTY-THIRD LESSON 
Venir—To come 

Principal parts: Venir, venant, venu, je viens, je 
vins. 

Venir de ( followed by an infinitive) —to have just. 
Ex.: II vient de sortir—He has just gone out. 

Venir a ( followed by an infinitive) —to happen to. 
Ex.: S’il vient a pleuvoir.. . —If it happens to 
rain.. . 

Venir a bout de —to succeed in. Ex.: Je viendrai a 
bout de jouer ce morceau—I shall succeed in play¬ 
ing that piece. 

En venir a bout —to get through, to accomplish it, to 
succeed in doing it. Ex.: J’en viendrai a bout, 
si j’etudie—I shall succeed in doing it, if I study. 

Faire venir —to send for, to have...sent. Ex.: Je 
fais venir mes livres de New York—I have my 
books sent from New York. 



118 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


Ou voulez-vous en venir?— What are you aiming at ? 
Ex.: Je vois ou vous voulez en venir—I see what 
you are aiming at. 

D’ou vient que. . .?—How is it that.. . ? Ex.: D’ou 
vient que vous soyez en retard?—How is it that 
you are late? 

II me vient une idee— An idea occurs to me, I have 
an idea. 

Venir au fait— to come to the point. 

En venir aux mains— to come to blows. Ex.: Ces 
deux pays en viendront bientot aux mains—Those 
two countries will soon come to blows. 

LXXIII 

1. Do you come from the country! 2. I do not 
come from there. 3. Where does he come from? 
4. If I happen to meet that man, I shall speak to 
him. 5. An idea occurs to me. Why should we not 
go and spend to-morrow at the seashore? 6. I had 
just left the house when I met him. 7. He had just 
gone out when I arrived. 8. Had he not just 
bought that house? 9. If it happened to rain, your 
hat would be spoiled. 10. Where did you send for 
your dress? 11. I have had it sent from Paris. 
12. This piece of music is very difficult; I have not 
yet succeeded in playing it. 13. We have succeeded. 
14. He has succeeded. 15. An idea has occurred to 
me which I shall impart to you. 16. After long 
disputes, these two countries have come to blows. 
17. If I had come sooner, I would have heard him 
sing. 18. You would have heard him sing, if you 
had come sooner. 19. I shall succeed in speaking 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


119 


that language. 20. You will never succeed in cor¬ 
recting that child, if you do not take other meas¬ 
ures. 21. We shall accomplish it with a little 
patience. 22. When you will have accomplished it, 
you will tell me. 23. You will notify me when he 
will have come. 24. We would come, if you invited 
us. 25. Would you come, if I should invite you? 
26. Would they not come, if I invited them? 27. 
They would have come, if you had invited them. 

28. We would have come, if you had invited us. 

29. Would you have come, if I had invited you? 

30. Do you want me to come to-morrow? 31. He 
does not want me to come to-morrow. 32. We 
must come every day. 33. It is good that you have 
come. 34. It is good that he has come. 35. Are 
you not glad that we have come? 36. Come to the 
point; I am listening to you. 37. I do not under¬ 
stand what he is aiming at. 38. Do you not see 
what we are aiming at? 39. After having repeat¬ 
edly come to blows, they made a treaty of alliance. 


SEVENTY-FOURTH LESSON 
Vivre—To live 

Principal parts : Vivre, vivant, vecu, je vis, je veeus. 
Vivre de ses rentes— to live upon one’s income. 
Vivre au jour le jour —to live from hand to mouth. 
Vivre a gogo— to live in clover. 

LXXIV 

1. Why do you live in the country? 2. I live in 



120 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


the country for my health. 3. We do not always 
live in the country. 4. That man worked hard dur¬ 
ing his youth; he now lives on his income. 5. Work¬ 
men usually live from hand to mouth. 6. My friend 
has no longer anything to do; he lives in clover. 
7. Our parents lived in the country. 8. Did you 
not live in the city before your marriage ? 9. I have 

always lived in a city. 10. They have always lived 
in a city. 11. Did you not live in a village for a 
long time? 12. We have never lived in a village. 
13. If you had lived in the country, you would not 
ask me all those questions. 14. I would know all 
that, if I had lived in the country. 15. When they 
will have retired from business, they will live on 
their incomes. 16. Where will he live, when he is 
married? 17. He will change his mind, when he 
will have lived in New York a little while. 18. I 
shall perhaps change my mind, when I shall have 
lived in New York. 19. Would you live in Prance, 
if you had a small fortune? 20. Would you not live 
in France? 21. He would live in the country, if he 
could. 22. Would you not have lived in the coun¬ 
try, if you had had your own way? 23. They would 
not have lived in the city, if they had had their own 
way. 24. Where would you have lived? 25. I wish 
that you live long and happily. 26. I wish that 
they live happily. 27. He wishes that we may some 
day live on our incomes. 28. I regret that you live 
so far from us. 29. I regret that until now you 
have lived so far from us. 30. It is better that we 
have lived in the country, as long as the children 
were small. 31. Live happy. 32. Let us live 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


121 


simply. 33. Long live America! 34. You escape 
many illnesses by living in the country. 35. After 
having lived far from you during many years, I am 
quite happy to return home. 


SEVENTY-FIFTH LESSON 
Voire—To see 

Principal parts: Voir, voyant, vu, je vois, je vis. 
Faire voir —to show. Ex.: Faites-moi voir des gants 
—Show me some gloves. 

Voir venir quelqu’un— to see what one is driving at. 
Ex.: Je vous vois venir—I see what you are driv¬ 
ing at. 

N’avoir rien a voir a —to have nothing to do with. 
Ex.: Je n’ai rien a voir a ce qu’il fait—I have 
nothing to do with what he does. 

LXXV 

1. Do you see him every day? 2. I see him every 
day. 3. I do not see him. 4. She sees me. 5. She 
does not see me. 6. They see you. 7. Do they not 
see you? 8. Have you nothing to do with the 
arrangements of that celebration? 9. He has noth¬ 
ing to do with the repairs which they are making. 
10. Did you see her every day when you were 
abroad? 11. I did not see her every day. 12. We 
did not see them often. 13. Did you see me yes¬ 
terday? 14. I saw you. 15. I did not see you. 
16. Did you see that lady? 17. We have seen her. 
18. I have not seen her. 19. Has he seen those gen- 



122 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


tlemen? 20. He has seen them. 21. He has not 
seen them. 22. If I have not accepted what he pro¬ 
posed to me, it is because I saw what he was driving 
at. 23. I had already seen many people when you 
came. 24. Had you already seen many people? 
25. I shall see you to-morrow. 26. She will see you. 
27. We shall not see you. 28. Will you see them 
to-morrow? 29. When you shall have seen them, 
you will send them to me. 30. I shall send them to 
you, when I shall have seen them. 31. I should 
have nothing to do with these arrangements, if my 
partner were here. 32. Would you have nothing to 
do with that? 33. I would see that lady, if she 
came. 34. Would you see her, if she came? 35. 
Would you not see her? 36. I would have seen you, 
if you had come. 37. Would you not have seen me, if 
I had been there? 38. We would have seen you, 
if you had been there. 39. What do you wish me to 
show you? 40. Do you want me to show you pretty 
laces? 41. I want you to see them. 42. He wants 
us to see them. 43. I am delighted that you have 
seen them. 44. He is delighted that we have seen 
them. 45. Let us see the newest hats. 46. After 
having seen them, we shall make a choice. 


SEVENTY-SIXTH LESSON 
Vouloir—To wish, want 

Principal parts: Vouloir, voulant, voulu, je veux, je 
voulus. 

Vouloir du bien a —to bear good will to. Ex.: Mon 



French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 123 

pere vous veut du bien—My father bears good 
will to you. 

Vouloir du mal a— to bear ill will to. Ex.: Cet 
homme veut du mal a tous ses concurrents—That 
man bears ill will to all his competitors. 

Vouloir bien— to be good enough, to like. Ex.: Je 
voudrais bien sortir—I would like to go out. 
Voulez-vous bien fermer la fenetre?—Will you be 
good enough to close the window? 

Vouloir dire— to mean. 

Dieu le veuille!— God grant it! 

Veuillez —please. Ex.: Veuillez fermer la porte— 
Please close the door. 

LXXVI 

1. Do you wish to speak to me? 2. I wish to 
speak to you. 3. He wishes to speak to you. 4. 
We do not wish to go out. 5. Do they not wish to 
go out? 6. What do you mean? I do not under¬ 
stand you. 7. I mean that we shall probably not 
come. 8. Why did he leave us? I bore him no ill 
will. 9. We bore him good-will, on the contrary. 
10. I did not understand what he meant. 11. Did 
you not understand what I meant? 12. He would 
not follow me. (He did not want to follow me.) 
13. Why did he not want to follow you? 14. Why 
did you not want to follow me? 15. I know why 
you did not want to follow us. 16. If he had not 
wanted to come, he would have told us. 17. If you 
had not wished to come, you would have told us. 
18. I am sure that he will not want to accept this 
invitation. 19. They will not want to accept it. 


124 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


20. He would much like to spend the summer with 
us, but his business keeps him in the city. 21. Will 
you not come to spend the summer with us? 22. 
We would very much like to accompany you. 23. I 
would very much like to accompany you. 24. We 
would have liked very much to accompany you. 

25. Would you not have liked to accompany them? 

26. They would have liked very much to spend a 
few weeks with us. 27. Do you believe they bear 
that man good will? 28. I do not believe he bears 
that man good will. 29. I am sorry you will not 
accept that invitation. 30. Are you sorry that we 
will not accept? 31. I regret that you did not wish 
to follow us. 32. I regret that he did not wish to 
follow us. 33. She regrets that we did not wish 
to follow, her. 34. Kindly close the window. 35. 
Kindly sit down. 36. You say that they will arrive 
safely. God grant it! 37. I thank you for having 
been willing to accept my invitation. 


SEVENTY-SEVENTH LESSON 

En vouloir a—To be angry with 

Principal parts : En vouloir, en voulant, en ayant 
voulu, j’en veux, j’en vouius. 

En vouloir a—to have a grudge against, to be angry 
with. Ex.: J’en veux a cet homme—I am angry 
with that man. Je vous en veux—I am angry 
with you. 

En vouloir a (in the future specially) —not to for¬ 
give. Ex.: J’en voudrai toujours a cet homme— 
I shall never forgive that man. 



French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 125 

En vouloir a —to be aiming at, to be after. Ex.: II 
en veut a ma position—He is aiming at my 
position. 

S’en vouloir de —not to forgive oneself for. Ex.: 
Je m’en veux d ’avoir dit cela—I do not forgive 
myself for having said that. 

LXXYII 

1. He is angry with his friend. 2. He is angry 
with him. 3. I am angry with my friend. 4. I am 
angry with him. 5. You are angry with me. 6. 
Why are you angry with me? 7. Are you angry 
with me? 8. I am not angry with you. 9. They 
are angry with him. 10. They are angry with us. 

11. I was angry with him because he had not come. 

12. Were you angry with him for that? 13. He was 
never angry with me. 14. We were never angry 
with you. 15. If I had had a grudge against him, 
I would not have invited him. 16. If he had had a 
grudge against you, he would not have invited you. 

17. If you are not there, I shall never forgive you. 

18. He will never forgive you. 19. We shall never 
forgive them. 20. They will never forgive me. 21. 
I shall never forgive myself for having missed that 
chance. 22. He will never forgive himself. 23. 
Would you be angry with me, if I were not there? 
24. I would be angry with you. 25. I would not 
be angry with you. 26. You would not be angry 
with me, would you? 27. I should have been angry 
with you, if you had missed that chance. 28. Would 
you have been angry with me? 29. Would you 
not have been angry with her? 30. I should never 


126 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


have forgiven myself, if I had missed that chance. 
31. He would never have forgiven himself. 32. It 
is possible that he is angry with her. 33. I do not 
believe that you are angry with her. 34. He is 
surprised that we are not angry with him. 35. It 
is better that you were not angry with him. 36. It 
is better that he was not angry with you. 37. Do not 
be angry with me for having done that. 38. You 
must not be angry with me. 39. You must not be 
angry with us. 40. You must not be angry with 
them. 41. I cannot be angry with you. 42. He is 
aiming at your position. 43. It’s the king the revo¬ 
lutionists are after. 


VOCABULARY 


A 

a, an, un, une. 
able, (to be), pouvoir. 
about, de, £t peu pres, a, au 
sujef: de. 

abroad, a l’etranger. 
absence, absence, f. 
absent (to be), s’absenter. 
abuse, injurier. 
accept, accepter, 
accident, accident, m. 
accompany, accompagner. 
according (to), selon. 
account, compte, m.; to make 
one’s —s, faire ses comptes; 
on my —, a cause de moi. 
accuse, accuser, 
acquaintance, connaissance, f. 
across, a travers, de 1’autre 
cote. 

act, agir. 
action, action, f. 
address, addresser, 
admirably, admirablement. 
admit, admettre. 
advance, (in), d’avance. 
advice, conseil, m. 
advise, (notify), aviser. 
affair, affaire, f. 
afraid, (to be), craindre; to 
be —, avoir peur. 
after, apr&s; — having, apres 
avoir, apres etre. 
afternoon, apr&s midi, m. or f. 


I again, encore, 
against, contre. 
age, age, m; with —, en vieil- 
lissant. 
air, air, m. 

all, tout, m. sing.; tous, m. pi.; 
toute, f. sing.; toutes, f. pi.; 
all that which, tout ce que, 
tout ce qui, tout ce dont. 
alliance, alliance, f. 
almost, presque. 
alone, seul, (e). 
aloud, haut, tout haut, a haute 
voix. 

already, dej&. 
also, aussi. 
although, quoique. 
always, toujours. 

America, Amerique, f. 
American, americain, (e). 
ancients, anciens, m. pi. 
angry, en colere; to get —, 
se mettre cn col&re. 
animal, animal, m. (pi. aux). 
annoy, contrarier. 
another, un autre, m.; une 
autre, f. 

answer, repondre. 
answer, reponse, f. 
anything, quelque chose; 
n’importe quoi, quoi que ce 
soit; not —, ne rien. 
apply, s’addresser. 
ardor, ardeur, f. 


127 




128 


French Verbs and Verbal Idioms 


argument, raisonnement, m. 
arise, se lever, 
arm, bras, m. 

around, (here about), par la. 
arrange, arranger, 
arrangement, arrangement, m. 
arrive, arriver. 
article, article, m. 
artist, artiste, m. or f.; peintre, 
m. 

as, aussi; — well —, aussi 
bien que; — you wish, 
comme il vous plaira. 

ask, demander; — a question, 
faire une question, 
associate, (to — with), fre¬ 
quenter. 

assurance, aplomb, m, 
assuredly, assurement. 
astonish, etonner. 

at, a; — the, au, a la, al', aux. 
attack, attaquer. 

attack, attaque, f. 
attentively, attentivement. 
author, auteur, m. 
avoid, eviter. 
away, sorti, (e). 

B 

back, (to be), etre de retour, 
bad, mauvais; too —, mal- 
heureux. 
badly, mal. 

ball, balle, f.; to play —, jouer 
a la balle. 
bank, banque, f. 
basket, panier, m. 
be, etre. 

beautiful, beau, belle 


because, parce que. 
become, devenir. 
before, avant, avant que; (in 
front of), devant. 
begin, commencer, se mettre a. 
beginning, commencement, m. 
believe, croire; make believe, 
faire semblant (de). 
bell, cloche, f.; (small bell), 
sonnette, f.; to ring the —, 
sonner. 

belong, appartenir, etre a. 
bench, banc, m. 
betray, trahir. 

better, (adv.), mieux; it is —, 
il vaut mieux; you had 
—, il vaut mieux que; 
meilleur (adj.). 
between, entre. 
bill, note, f.; facture, f. 
bird, oiseau, m. 
blacksmith, forgeron, m. 
blame, blamer. 
blunder, bevue, f. 
board, (on), & bord 
boast, se vanter. 
boat, bateau, m. 
book, livre, m. 
bottom, fond, m. 
bouquet, bouquet, m. 

box, boite, f. 

boy, garcon, m. 

brave, brave, courageux. 
break, briser; to — forth, 
eclater. 

breakfast, dejeuner, m. 
breath, haleine, f.; out of —, 
hors d’haleine. 
breathe, respirer. 



Vocabulary 


129 


bring, apporter. 
brother, frere, m. 
brush, brosse, f.; paint —, 
pinceau, m. 

burst, eclater; to — out 
laughing, 6clater de rire. 
business, affaires (les), f. 
but, mais, ne . . . que. 
buy, acheter. 

by, par; (near) pres de; — 

— reputation, de reputation; 
(before pres, part.), en. 

C 

call, faire une visite, passer 
chez. 

calm, calme. 

can, (to be able), pouvoir. 
candy, bonbon, m.; candi, m. 
care, soin, m; to take good 

— not to, prendre garde 
de ne pas. 

career, carriere, f. 
careful, (to be), faire atten¬ 
tion. 

carriage, voiture, f. 
carve, decouper. 
cat, chat, m.; ehatte, f. 
catch, attraper; — cold, 
prendre froid. 
cease, cesser, 
ceiling, plafond, m. 
celebrated, celebre. 
celebration, fete, f. 
certain, certain, 
certainly, certainement. 
chair, chaise, f.; orchestra —, 
fauteuil d’orchestre, m. 


chamber-maid, femme d e 
chambre, f. 
chance, occasion, f. 
change, changer; — one’s 
mind, changer d’avis. 
change, changement, m. 
changeable, variable, incon¬ 
stant. 

character, caractere, m. 
charge, (to take charge of), 
se charger de. 
charming, charmant, (e). 
chauffeur, chauffeur, m. 
chief, chef, m. 

child, enfant, m. or f.; chil¬ 
dren, enfants. 
choice, choix, m. 

Christmas, Noel, f. 
church, eglise, f. 
city, ville, f. 
class, classe, f. 

class-room, salle de classe, f. 
clever, habile, 
climate, climat, m. 
climb, grimper. 
close, fermer. 
coachman, cocher, m. 
coast, cote, f. 
coffee, caf6, m. 
cold, froid, m. 
college, college, m. 
come, venir; — back, revenir; 
— in, entrer; — down, 
descendre. 

commence, commencer. 
company, compagnie, f.; to 
have —, avoir du monde. 
complain, se plaindre. 
complicate, compliquer. 




131 ? 


Vocabulary 


compliment, complimenter, 
compliment, compliment, m. 
comrade, eamarade, m. or f. 
condition, condition, f. 
congratulate, feliciter. 
consequence, consequence, f. 
console, consoler, 
consult, consulter. 
continue, continuer, 
contrary, contraire; on the —, 
au contraire. 

cook, cuisinier, m.; cuisiniere, f. 
cooking, cuisine, f. 
corner, coin, m. 
correct, corriger, 
correspondence, correspon- 
dance, f. 
cost, couter. 
cottage, villa, f. 
council, conseil, m. 
country, pays, m.; campagne, f. 
course, cours, m. 
course, (of), naturellement; 
bien entendu. 

cover, couverture, f. ; from — 
to —, d ’un bout a 1 ’autre, 
criticism, critique, f. 
cross, traverser, 
crowd, encombrer. 
cry, pleurer. 
custom, coutume, f. 

D 

dare, oser. 
date, date, f. 
daughter, fille, f. 
dawn, point du jour, m.; 
1 ’aurore, f. 


day, jour, m.; — before yes¬ 
terday, avant hier; every 
—, tous les jours; all — 
long, toute la journee; this 
very —, aujourd’hui meme. 
deal, (a good), beaucoup; to 
— with, avoir affaire a. 
debt, dette, f. 
decide, decider, 
delay, retard. 

delighted, ravi (e), enchante, 

(e). 

desk, bureau, m. 
detail, detail, m. 
dictation, dictee, f. 
dictionary, dictionnaire, m. 
die, mourir. 

differently, differemment. 
difficult, difficile, 
dining-room, salle a manger, f. 
dinner, diner, m. 
diploma, diplome, m. 
disobey, desobeir (&). 
dispense, se dispenser, 
disposal, disposition, f. 
dispute, dispute, f. 
disturb, deranger, 
do, faire, se faire, rendre. 
doctor, meclecin, m. 
dog, chien, m. 
dollar, dollar, m. 
door, porte, f. 
double, double, m. 
doubt, douter; no —, sans 
doute; to — it, en douter. 
downtown, bas de la ville, m. 
dress, robe, f. 
dress, habiller, s’habiller. 
dressmaker, couturi&re, f. 



Vocabulary 


131 


drive, conduire; to — away, 
ehasser. 

drown, se noyer. 
dry-goods, mereerie, f.; — 

store, mereerie, f. 
during, pendant, 
dutch, hollandais, (e). 
duty, devoir, m. 

E 

each, chaque. 

early, de bonne lieure; — in 
the morning, de bon matin, 
earn, gagner, meriter. 
easily, facilement. 
easy, facile, tranquille. 

Easter, Paque or Paques, m. 
eat, manger, 
egg, ceuf, m. 
eight, huit. 

either, Pun ou 1’autre, m. 
sing.; Pune ou Pautre, f. 
sing.; (used negatively), 
aucun, aucune. 
eleven, onze. 

elsewhere, ailleurs, autre part, 
end, fin, f.; bout, m.; at the 
— of the table, au bout de 
la table. 

enemy, ennemi, (e). 
engage, engager, retenir. 
engaged, (busy) , occupe. 
English, anglais, m. 
enough, assez. 
enter, entrer. 
enterprise, entreprise, f. 
entirely, entierement. 
error, erreur, f.; faute, f. 
escape, echapper. 


escort, accompagner. 
esteem, estime, f. 

Europe, Europe, f. 
evening, soir, m.; soiree, f. 
ever, jamais. 

every, tout, tous, toute, 
toutes; — word, tous les 
mots; — morning, tous les 
matins. 

everybody, tout le monde. 
every one, tout le monde. 
everything, tout, 
every time, toutes les fois, 
chaque fois. 
everywhere, partout. 
evidence, evidence, f.; preu ve, f. 
evidently, evidemment. 
exact, (to) , exiger. 
exactly, exactement. 
examination, examen ; m. 
example, exemple, m. 
exhaust, epuiser. 
expect, compter, attendre. 
expenses, frais, m. pi. 
experience, experience, f. 
explain, expliquer. 
explosion, explosion, f. 
express, (utter) , exprimer, 
expression, expression, f. 
extraordinary, extraordinaire, 
eye, ceil, m. sing.; yeux, m. pi. 
F 

face, figure, f.; visage, m. 

factory, fabrique, f. 

fail, manquer. 

fair, foire, f. 

fairy, fee, f. 

fall, tomber. 

family, famille, f. 



132 


Vocabulary 


far, loin; as — as, jusqu’a, 
aussi loin que. 
farm, ferine, f. 
fast, vite, rapide; faster, plus 
vite. 

father, pere, m. 
fear, craindre. 

fear, peur, f.; crainte, f.; for 
— that, de peur que. 
feel, se sentir; to — better, 
se sentir mieux; to — eas¬ 
ier, etre plus tranquille. 
feelings, sentiments, m. pi. 
few, quelques; quite a —, un 
bon nombre. 
fifteen, quinze. 
fifty, cinquante. 
finally, enfin, finalement. 

find, trouver; to — again, re- 
trouver. 

fine, beau, belle, 
finger, doigt, m. 
finish, finir. 

fire, feu, m.; incendie, m. 
first, premier, m.; at —, 
d’abord. 
five, cinq, 
fix, arranger, 
float, radeau, m. 
flower, fleur, f. 
follow, suivre. 
foolish, fol, sot. 
foot, pied, m. 
for, pour, pendant, depuis. 
forbid, defendre. 
force, obliger, forcer, 
forge, forger, 
forget, oublier. 
forgive, pardonner. 


former, ancien. 
formerly, autrefois, 
fortunate, heureux. 
fortunately, heureusement, par 
bonheur. 

fortune, fortune, f. 

France, France, f. 

French, fran^ais, (e); (lan¬ 
guage), fran<jais, m. 
frequently, souvent, frequem- 
ment. 

friend, ami, m. 
full plein; a — meal, un bon 
repas. 

fun, plaisanterie, f.; for —, 
pour plaisanter, pour rire. 
future, avenir, m.; in the —, 
a l’avenir. 

a 

gain, gagner. 
garden, jardin, m. 
gas, gaz, m.; — light, la lu- 
minere du gaz. 
gentleman, monsieur, m. 
get, se procurer; to come to 
—, venir chercher; to go to 
—, aller chercher; to — wet, 
se mouiller. 
girl, fille, f. 

give, donner; — back, rendre. 
glad, content, (e); aise, heur¬ 
eux, (se). 
glass, verre, m. 
glove, gant, m. 
go, aller, partir; to — out, 
sortir; — on, continuer; to 
be —ing on, se passer; 
what is —ing on? qu’est-ce 



Vocabulary 


133 


qui se passe? to let —, 
lacher; — up, monter. 

God, Dieu, m. 
good, bon, bonne, 
good, bien, m.; to do —, faire 
le bien. 

governess, gouvernante, f. 
gratitude, reconnaissance, f. 
great, grand, (e). 

Greek, grec, m. 
green, vert, (e). 
grieve, facher, afBiger. 
grow, grandir; when he —s 
up, quand il sera grand, 
grown people, grandes per- 
sonnes, f. pi. 
gun, fusil, m. 

H 

hail, grele, f. 

hair, cheveu, (x), m. 

half, demi, (e), moitie, f. 

hall, salle, f. 

hand, main, f. 

hand, remettre. 

happen, arriver, se faire; how 
does it — that, comment se 
fait-il que. 

happiness, bonheur, m. 
happy, heureux, (se). 
hard, fort, dur. 
hardly, a peine; ne . . . guere. 
hat, chapeau, m. 
have, avoir; to — to, etre 
oblige de. 
he, il, lui, celui. 
head, tete, f. 
health, sante, f. 


hear, entendre, apprendre, 
savoir; to — from, recevoir 
des nouvelles de. 
heart, cceur, m. 
help, aider, 
her, la, F, lui. 

her, (poss. adj.), son, sa, ses. 
here, ici, y. 
hesitate, hesiter. 
hesitation, hesitation, f. 
him, le, F, lui. 

his, son, sa, ses. 

history, histoire, f. (h mu- 
ette). 

hit, frapper; to — the nail 
on the head, frapper juste. 

home, cliez (followed by noun 
or pronoun); au logis, a la 
maison. 

honest, honnete, (h muette). 
honor, honneur, m. (h muette). 
hope, esperer. 
horrible, horrible, 
horribly, horriblement. 
horse, cheval, m. sing.; che- 
vaux, pi.; saddle —, cheval 
de selle. 

host, amphitryon, m. 
hot, chaud. 

hour, heure, f. (h muette). 
house, maison, f. 
how, comment; — many, com- 
bien de; — long, combien 
de temps, combien y a-t-il; 
— does it happen? comment 
se fait-il? — much, com¬ 
bien. 

hundred, cent; one —, cent, 
hurry, presser; to be in a —, 




134 


Vocabulary 


etre presse; in such a —, 

si presse. 

hurt, faire mal; to — the 
feelings of, froisser les 
sentiments de. 
husband, mari, m. 

I 

I, je, moi. 
idea, id6e, f. 
if, si. 

ill, malade; — treated, mal 
traite. 

illness, maladie, f. 
il y a, there is, there are. 
imagine, imaginer. 
immediately, immediatement. 
immensely, immensement. 
impart, communiquer. 
impassable, impassable, im¬ 
practicable. 

important, important; it is — 
that, il importe que. 
impossible, impossible, 
improvement, amelioration, f. 
in, a, dans, en, sur; — it, 
dedans. 

inform, dire, renseigner. 
information, renseignement, m. 
injure, (one’s reputation), 
faire tort a. 
innocence, innocence, f. 
innocent, innocent, 
instant, instant, m.; this —, 
a 1’instant, 
insult, insulter. 
interesting, interessant, (e). 
intend, compter, 
into, dans. 


introduce, presenter, 
inventory, inventaire, m. 
invitation, invitation, f. 
invite, inviter. 

it, il, elle, en, ce, le, la, cela. 
it is, c’est. 
its, ses. 

J 

join, joindre; to — a com¬ 
pany, entrer dans une com- 
pagnie. 

judgment, jugement, m. 

June, juin, m. 

just, to have —, venir de. 

K 

keep, garder; — silent, se 
taire; — the carriages mov¬ 
ing, faire circuler les voi- 
tures; tenir, retenir. 
kind, bon, aimable. 
kindly, venillez, (idiomatic), 
knife, couteau, m. 
know, savoir. 

L 

lace, dentelle, f. 
ladder, echelle, f. 
lady, dame, f. 
landscape, paysage, m. 
language, langue, f. 
last, dernier, m.; derniere, f. 
late, (of time), tard; (of peo¬ 
ple), en retard, 
latin, latin, m. 

laugh, rire; he who — last, 
— best, rira bien qui rim 
le dernier, 
lawyer, avocat, m. 




Vocabulary 


135 


learn, apprendre. 
least, moindre. 

leave, quitter, partir, laisser; 
before leaving avant de 
quitter. 

lecture, conference, f. 
lend, prefer, 
less, moins. 
lesson, legon, f. 
let, (leave), laisser; to — 
some one do it, laisser faire. 
letter, lettre, f. 
library, bibliotheque, f. 
life, vie, f. 
lifetime, vie, f. 
like, aimer; — better, aimer 
mieux. 

like, (adv), comme. 
likely, probable; it is —, il 
est probable. 

line, ligne, f.; to drop a —, 
envoyer un mot. 
listen, ecouter. 
literature, litterature, f. 
little, (adv.), peu. 
little, (adj.), petit (e). 
live, demeurer, vivre. 
long, long, m.; — time, long- 
temps; no longer, no more, 
ne . . . plus; as — as, tant 
que. 

look (to — for), chercher. 
look, regarder; to — well, 
avoir bonne mine; to — 
better, avoir meilleure mine, 
lose, perdre. 
loss, perte, f. 
lot, tas, m. 


M 

madam, madame, f. 
mail, courrier, m.; poste, f. 
mail, envoyer, mettre a la 
poste. 

make, faire; — both ends 
meet, joindre les deux bouts, 
man, homme, m. 
manner, fagon, f. 
mantlepiece, cheminee, f. 
many, beaucoup; so —, tant 
de; as —, autant de. 
marriage, mariage, m. 
marry, marier, se marier, 
epouser. 

master, maitre, m. 
material, materiaux, m. pi. 
matter, affaire, f. 
may, pouvoir; it — be, il 
peut se faire. 
mayor, maire, m. 
me, me, m ’, moi. 
meal, repas, m. 
mean, (to), vouloir dire, 
meaning, signification, f. 
measure, mesure, f. 
meet, rencontrer. 
memory, memoire, f. 
milk, lait, m. 

mind, esprit, m.; intelligence, 
f.; to make up one’s —, 
se decider, prendre son 
parti. 

mineral, mineral, (e) 
minute, minute, f. 
miss, manquer. 

mistake, erreur, f.; faute, f. 
modern, mod erne, 
money, argent, m. 



136 


Vocabulary 


month, mois, m. 
more, plus; — than, plus de; 
no —, ne . . . plus; — and 
—, de plus en plus, 
morning, matin, m.; matinee, 
f.; every —, tous les matins, 
morrow, lendemain, m. 
mother, mere, f. 
motive, motif, m. 
motto, devise, f. 
mountain, montagne, f. 
mouse, souris, f. 
mouth, bouche, f. 
move, demenager; to keep 

carriages —ing, faire cir- 
culer les voitures. 

Mrs., Mme. 

much, beaueoup; very —, 

beaucoup; not —, pas beau- 
coup, pas grand ’chose; so 
—, tant; as — as, autant 
. . . que; too —, trop. 
museum, musee, m. 
music, musique, f. 
must, devoir, falloir. 
must, (to be necessary), fal¬ 
loir; it is necessary, il faut. 
my, mon, ma, mes. 
myself, moi-meme. 

N 

name, nom, m. 
near, pres, (de). 
necessary, necessaire; to be 
—, falloir. 
necklace, collier, m. 
needle, aiguille, f. 
neighboring, voisin, (e). 
nervous, nerveux; to make —, 


rendre nerveux. 
never, ne . . . jamais, 
new, nouveau, nouvelle, neuf, 

(ve). 

news, nouvelle, f. 
newspaper, journal, m. (pi. 

aux). 

next, prochain, (e). 
nice, gentil, gentille. 
nicely, bien. 
nicknack, bibelot, m. 
night, nuit, f.; last —, hier 
soir. 

nine, neuf. 

no, non, ne . . . pas. 
noise, bruit, m. 

no one, ne . . . personne. 
noon, midi. 

not, ne . . . pas; or —, ou non. 

nothing, ne . . . rien, rien. 

notice, remarquer. 

notify, aviser. 

novel, roman, m. 

now, maintenant, & present. 

number, nombre, m. 

O 

obtain, obtenir. 
occasion, eirconstance, f.; oc¬ 
casion, f. 
occupy, occuper. 
occur, arriver, se passer, 
o’clock, heure, f. 

of, de; — it, — them, some, 
en. 

offer, offrir. 
often, souvent. 

old, vieux, vieille; to grow 
older, vieillir. 



Vocabulary 


137 


on, sur, dans. 

once, une fois; at —, tout de 
suite; — more, encore une 
fois. 

one, un, une. 
one, (ind. pron.), on. 
only, ne . . . que, seulement. 
open, ouvrir; wide —, grand 
ouvert. 

operation, operation, f. 
opportunity, occasion, f. 
other, autre, 
our, notre, nos. 
ourselves, nous-memes. 
out, (outside), dehors, m. 
outrage, affront, m. 
overflow, deborder, 
own, (adj,), propre. 

P 

package, paquet, m. 
page, page, f. 
painter, peintre, ra. 
painting, tableau, m.; peint- 
ure, f. 

pair, paire, f. 

paper, journal, m.; papier, m. 
parasol, ombrelle, f. 
parcel, paquet, m.; colis, m. 
parent, parent, m. 
pardon, pardonner. 

Paris, Paris, m. 
park, pare, m. 
parlor, salon, m. 
particulars, details, m. pi. 
partner, associe, m. 
party, evening —, soiree, f. 
pass, passer. 


patience, patience, f. 
pay, payer, 
peace, paix, f. 
peculiarity, singularity f. 
pencil, crayon, m. 
people, on; many —, beau- 
coup de monde; personnes, 
f., pi. 

perfectly, parfaitement. 

performance, representation, f. 

perhaps, peut-etre. 

perish, perir. 

picture, tableau, m. 

piece, piece, f.; morceau, m.; 

— of news, nouvelle, f. 
place, place, f.; in your —, a 
votre place; endroit, m.; 
lieu, m. 
plan, plan, m. 
plate, assiette, f. 
play, (to), jouer; to — piano, 
jouer du piano, 
play, pi&ce, f. 

please, satisfaire, plaire, con- 
tenter, faire plaisir, (kind¬ 
ly) veuillez. 
pleased, content, (e). 
pleasure, plaisir, m.; — party, 
partie de plaisir, f. 
pocket, poche, f. 
police, police, f. 
policeman, sergent de ville, m. 
politics, politique, f. 
poor, pauvre. 
position, position, f. 
possible, possible, 
postal card, carte-postale, f. 
postman, facteur, m. 
power, pouvoir, m.; to do all 



138 


Vocabulary 


in one’s —, faire son pos¬ 
sible. 

preceding, precedant, (e). 
prejudiced, prevenu. 
present, cadeau, m. 
presently, tout a l’heure. 
president, president, m. 
pretty, joli, (e). 
prevent, empecher. 
price, prix, m. 
priest, pretre, m. 
procession, procession, f. 
procure, se procurer, 
professor, professeur, m. or f. 
progress, progres, m. 
promise, promettre. 
pronounce, prononcer. 
proper, convenable; it is —, 
il convient. 

properly, convenablement. 
property, propriete, f. 
propose, proposer, 
protest, protester, 
proverb, proverbe, m. 
prudent, prudent, 
public, public, m.; publique f. 
punish, punir. 
pupil, el&ve, m. or f. 

Q 

quarter, quart, m. 
question, question, f.; to be a 
— of, s’agir de. 
quite, bien, tres, tout. 

R 

rabbit, lapin, m. 
rain, pleuvoir. 


rain, pluie, f. 
rare, rare. 

reach, arriver a, parvenir a. 
read, lire, 
ready, pret, (e). 
really, vraiment. 
reason, raison, f. 
receive, recevoir. 
recently, recemment, nouvelle- 
ment. 

recommend, recommander, 
recommendation, recommanda- 
tion, f. 

reduce, diminuer. 
refreshment, rafraichisse- 

ment, m. 

regain, (of strength), re- 

prendre. 

regards, amities, f. pi.; com¬ 
pliments, m. 

regret, regretter; it is to be 
regretted, il est a regretter. 
regularly, regulierement. 
remain, rester. 

remember, se souvenir de; — 
me to him, rappelez-moi a 
son souvenir. 

remonstrance, remontrance, f. 
Renaissance, Renaissance, f. 
rent, louer. 

repairs, reparations, f. pi. 
repeatedly, a plusieurs re¬ 
prises. 

reply, repondre. 
report, (gunshot), detonation,f. 
reputation, reputation, f. 
require, exiger; (to need), 
avoir besoin de. 
re-read, relire. 



Vocabulary 


139 


respect, respect, m.; compli¬ 
ment, m. 

rest, (to take a — ), se re¬ 
poser. 

restore, (fully) (of a house), 
remettre a neuf. 
retire, (to go to bed), se 
coucher; (to withdraw), se 
retirer. 

return, rentrer, revenir; (to 
give back), rendre. 
revolutionist, revolutionnaire, 
m. 

rich, riche. 

ride, monter a cheval, (horse¬ 
back). 

rig, (dress), accoutrement, m. 
right, (proper), bien, juste, 
right, droit, (e), (adj.). 
right, droit, m.; to be in the 
—, avoir raison; to be with¬ 
in one’s rights, etre dans 
son droit, 
ring, sonner. 
rise, se lever, 
river, riviere, f. 
road, route, f.; chemin, m.; 
cross-road, chemin de tra¬ 
verse, m. 
rock, rocher, m. 
room, chambre, f.; guest’s 
room, chambre d ’amis, f. 
rubbers (overshoes), caout¬ 
chouc, m. 
ruin, ruiner. 

S 

saddle, selle. f. 


safe, (adj), sur, (e). 
safely, sain et sauf. 
same, meme; la meme chose; 
it is all the — to me, cel a 
m ’est egal. 
satisfy, satisfaire. 
save, sauver; (to spare) 
epargner. 
say, dire, 
scene, scene, f. 
school, ecole, f. 
scold, gronder. 

scrape, embarras, m.; man- 
vaise affaire, f. 
screen, ecran, m. 
sea, mer, f. 

seashore, bord de la mer, m. 
season, saison, f. 
seat, siege, m.; place, f. 
second, second, (e). 
secret, secret, m. 
secure, obtenir. 

see, voir; to — again, revoir. 
seem, sembler. 

seldom, rarement; it is —, il 
est rare, 
send, envoyer. 
seriously, serieusement. 
servant, domestique, m. or f.; 

servante, f. 
service, service, m. 
set, mettre; (of a trap), 
tendre. 

several plusieurs. 
she, elle. 

shelf, rayon, m.; etag&re, f. 
shine, (of weather), faire beau, 
shoe, soulier, m.; bottine, f. 
shop, (to), faire des emplettes. 



140 


Vocabulary 


short, court, (e); so — a time, 
si peu de temps, 
show, montrer. 
sick, malade. 
side, cote, m. 

silent, (to keep —), se taire. 
since, que, depuis, il y a, puis 
— que. 

sincerely, sincerement. 
sing, chanter, 
sister, sceur, f. 
situation, situation, f. 
six, six. 

skillful, habile, adroit, (e). 
skirt, jupe, f. 
slowly, lentement. 
small, petit, (e). 
smoke, fumer. 

so, si; — soon, si tot; (it) le. 
soil, sol, m.; terre, f. 
soldier, soldat, m. 
some, du, de la, des, de 1 ’, 
quelque, en. 
some one, quelqu’un. 
something, quelque chose. 

1 son, fils, m. 

soon, bientot, tot; as — as, 
aussitot que; no sooner, 
(hardly), a peine; sooner 
or later, t6t ou tard. 
sooner, plus tot. 

Sorbonne, Sorbonne, f. 
sort, sorte, f. 
sorry, fache. 
so that, afin que. 
soup, soupe, f. 
speak, parler. 
spectacles, lunettes, f. pi. 
speech, discours, m. 


spend, (to pass), passer, 
spoil, abimer. 
stable, ecurie, f. 
start, (off), partir. 
station, gare, f. 
stay, sejour, m. 
stay, rester. 
steal, voler. 
steamer, paquebot, m. 
step, marcher; to — into, 
passer dedans. 

step, (of stairs), marche, f.; 

(measure), demarche, f. 
still, encore, toujours. 
stone, pierre, f. 
stop, arreter. 

store, magasin, m.; dry-goods 
—, mercerie, f. 
store, (in), en reserve, 
story, histoire, f., (h muette). 
street, rue, f. 
strength, force, f. 
strike, (a bargain), faire une 
bonne affaire, 
string, ficelle, f. 
strong, fort, (e). 
study, etudier. 

study, cabinet, m.; etude, f. 
succeed, reussir. 
such, (a), un tel; une telle, 
suffering, souffrance, f. 
suffice, suffire. 
sufficient, suffisant, (e). 
sufficiently, assez, suffi- 
samment. 
suit, convenir. 
suit, (law), proc&s, m. 
summer, ete, m. 
sure, certain, (e) 




Vocabulary 


141 


surprise, surprise, f. 
surprise, surprendre. 
suspect, soupQonner. 
suspicion, soupQon, m. 
swim, nager. 

T 

table, table, f.; at the —, a 
table; to set the —, mettre 
le couvert. 

take, prendre; to — this step, 
faire cette demarche; fal- 
loir. 

tale, conte, m.; histoire, f., 
(h muette). 
target, cible, f. 
taste, gout, m. 
tea, the, m. 
teach, enseigner. 
tease, taquiner. 
telegram, depeche, f. 
tell, conter, dire, 
ten, dix. 
than, que. 
thank, remercier. 
that, ce, cet, celui, cette, cela, 
que. 

the, le, la, les. 
theater, theatre, m. 
their, leur, leurs. 

them, leur, les, eux; of —, 
en. 

then, alors. 

there, y, 1st; — is, voila. 
these, ces. 

they, ils, elles, on, eux. 
thing, chose, f.; affaire, f. 
think, penser, croire; to — 
it well to, croire bien faire. 


thirsty, (to be), avoir soif. 
thirteen, treize. 
this, ce, cet, cette. 
thoroughly, a fond, 
those, ces, ceux, celles. 
thousand, mille, m. 
thread, fil, m. 
three, trois. 

through, a travers, par. 
thunder, tonnerre, m. 
thus, (in that manner), de la 
sorte, ainsi. 
ticket, billet, m. 
till, jusqu’a. 

time, temps, m.; fois, f.; 
(once), une fois; at this — 
of the year, a cette epoque 
de l’annee; what — is it? 
Quelle heure est-il? all the 
—, tout le temps, 
tire, fatiguer. 
to, a, en. 

to-day, aujourd’hui. 
toilet, toilette, f. 
to-morrow, demain. 
tone, ton, m. 

to-night, ce soir, cette nuit. 
too (much), trop. 
tool, outil, m. 

toothache, mal aux dents, m. 

torment, tourmenter. 

to the, au, a la, aux, a 1\ 

touch, toucher. 

town, ville, f. 

train, train, m. 

train, exercer. 

transatlantic, transatlantique. 
travel, voyager, 
treat, traiter. 



142 


Vocabulary 


treaty, traite, m. 
tree, arbre, m. 
trimming, garniture, f. 
trip, voyage, m. 
trouble, peine, f.; embarras, 
m.; difficulte, f.; to get into 
—, s’attirer des dSsagre- 
ments. 

true, vrai, (e). 
truth, verite, f. 
try, essayer. 
turkey, dinde, f. 
twenty, vingt. 
two, deux. 

U 

umbrella, parapluie, m. 
under, sous, 
undergo, subir. 
understand, comprendre. 
undoubtedly, sans doute. 
uneasy, inquiet, m.; inquiete, f. 
unfortunately, malheureuse- 
ment. 

unless, a moins que. 

until, jusqu’a ce que, jusqu’a. 

us, nous. 

usually, ordinairement. 

V 

valet, valet, m. 
varnish, vernir. 
velvet, velour, m. 
venture, entreprise, f. 
verb, verbe, m. 
very, tres, bien. 
village, village, m. 
visit, visiter, 
vocabulary, vocabulaire. 


voice, voix, f. 
volume, volume, m. 

W 

waist, corsage, m. 
wait, attendre. 
waiter, gar§on, m. 
waitress, fille de service, f. 
walk, marcher, 
walk, (gait), demarche, f. 
want, vouloir. 
warm, chaud, (e). 
warrant, garantir, certifier, 
waste, (of time), perdre. 
water, eau, f. 

way, (manner), maniere, f.; 
faQon, f.; coutume, f.; to 
have one’s own —, faire a 
sa guise, 
we, nous, 
wear, porter, 
weather, temps, m. 
wedding, mariage, m.; noce, f. 
week, semaine, f. 
weep, pleurer. 
well, bien; well! eh bien! 
well-bred, bien eleve. 
wet, mouiller. 

what, que, qu’est-ce que, quoi, 
(pron. what); quel, quelle, 
(adj. what); (that which), 
ce que. 

when, quand, lorsque. 
where, ou. 
whether, que, si. 
which, (of), dont. 
while, (before pres, part.), en; 
pendant que; a little —, 
quelque temps. 




Vocabulary 


143 


white, blanc, m.; blanche, f. 
who, qui. 
whom, qui. 
why, pourquoi. 
wife, femme, f. 
willing, (to be), vouloir, 
vouloir bien, etre dispose a. 
willingly, volontiers. 

wind, vent, m. 
window, fenetre, f. 

wine, vin, m. 

winter, hiver, m. (h inuette). 
wise, sage; to be the wiser, 
etre plus avancS. 
wish, desir, m. 

wish, desirer; do as you —, 
faites comme vous voudrez. 
with, avec, de. 

withdraw, retirer, se retirer. 
without, sans, 
woman, femme, f. 
word, mot, m. 
work, travailler. 


work, ouvrage, m.; travail, m. 
workman, ouvrier, m. 
world, monde, m. 
worthless, sans valeur; to be 
—, ne rien valoir. 
write, ecrire. 

wrong, mal, mauvais; to do 
—, mal agir, mal faire; to 
be in the —, avoir tort; to 
acknowledge being —, re- 

connaitre ses torts. 

Y 

year, an, m.; annee, f. 

yes, oui. 
yesterday, hier. 

yet, encore; as —, encore, 
you, vous. 

young, jeune; — men, jeunes 
gens. 

your, votre, vos. 
yourself, vous-meme. 















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